The nation is looking to Colorado to lead the new energy economy.
Colorado is an
emerging leader in the energy marketplace with access to the abundant fossil
fuel and renewable energy resources of the American West. The Rocky Mountain
region has traditionally been known as the fossil fuel production corridor of
the United States due to large concentrations of coal, oil, and natural gas resources.
Oil and gas drilling along the Western Slope of Colorado has increased in
recent years, but mining in the Rocky Mountains and drilling and refining along
the Front Range of the state are also key contributors to the state’s energy
portfolio. Further, a growing group of research entities and renewable energy
companies help Colorado meet the current demand for fossil fuels and implement
sustainable technologies at the same time.
Biotechnology,
nanotechnology, materials science, and other technologies are driving the next
generation of energy products and strengthening key linkages between the
state’s energy and science-related industry clusters. An era of shrinking
energy reserves and increasing global energy demand is also driving increased
emphasis on energy research. Research is a critical component of all energy
industries, from fossil and coal to biodiesel and solar energy. With that in
mind, this report evaluates Colorado’s energy cluster in two subclusters: (1)
fossil energy and (2) renewable energy and energy research. The second
subcluster includes businesses and public entities whose missions are
sustainable energy and energy research. While energy research is also a key
component of fossil energy operations, it often cannot be isolated between
fossil and renewable energy operations.
Colorado companies
have recently been recognized in the national and international energy arenas.
In early 2007, for example, the West Elk Mine (Arch Coal, Inc.) received
government awards for land reclamation and voluntary pollution prevention.
Also, Colorado-based Evergreen Energy, Inc. recently announced a key contract
with a Chinese power company. Evergreen will conduct a feasibility study and
potentially build a refinery that will employ the company’s proprietary
clean-coal technology overseas.
On the renewable
energy side, AVA Solar, a startup company with roots at Colorado State
University, announced plans to open a major solar-panel manufacturing facility
in Longmont. The company will build solar panels using a patented process they
say costs dramatically less than the leading solar technology. Vestas Wind
Systems A/S, the world’s largest manufacturer of wind turbines, has selected
Windsor for its only North American manufacturing site. As of mid-2007, Colorado
is the location of six wind farms, the second largest solar plant in the
country located in the San Luis Valley, four biodiesel plants, and at least
three ethanol plants (with several additional proposed).
The Colorado Energy
Coalition, a consortium of leaders and stakeholders in Colorado’s diverse
energy industry, works to make Colorado an even more competitive place for all
energy-related sectors to do business and to market Colorado’s dynamic energy
economy nationwide.
Colorado’s energy
cluster is a dynamic and diverse group of industries that employs more than
47,000 workers throughout the state. The following sections describe the fossil
energy and renewable energy and energy research subclusters in detail.