Calpine Completes $739M Sale of Colorado Plants

Calpine Corporation CPN today completed the sale of its two Colorado power plants to Public Service Company of Colorado, an Xcel Energy Company XEL, for $739 million, or $794 per kilowatt, plus adjustments. Xcel Energy acquired the 621-megawatt Rocky Mountain Energy Center, an efficient combined-cycle plant near Hudson, Colo., that began commercial operation in 2004, as well as the 310-megawatt, simple-cycle Blue Spruce Energy Center in Aurora, Colo., which began operation in 2003. Calpine and Xcel Energy announced the planned transaction in April following an offer by Calpine into a competitive bid process that was part of Xcel Energy's 2007 Colorado Resource Plan. Calpine offered the least-cost option among many bids for the needed generating resources.