The City of Boulder
Mapped a 175MW path to local renewable generation by turning a citywide solar feasibility gap into a phased, fundable action plan
Summary
Optony was engaged by the City of Boulder, Colorado to develop a comprehensive, action-oriented solar strategy capable of advancing Boulder toward its locally adopted renewable energy generation goals. The engagement encompassed a citywide assessment of solar resource feasibility, facility-level solar planning across all City-owned properties, energy storage integration analysis, and the design of ten phased, programmatic strategies organized across three implementation phases. The resulting Solar Action Strategies plan was formally structured to align with — and accelerate — Boulder's ongoing effort to establish a municipal electric utility.
The Challenge
To close the gap between business-as-usual solar growth and Boulder City Council's adopted renewable generation targets — 50MW by 2020, 100MW by 2030, and 175MW by 2050 — by designing an integrated portfolio of financially viable, administratively practical strategies that account for grid constraints, Xcel Energy's regulatory environment, and the City's long-term municipalization trajectory.
Our Approach
Optony and Colorado Energy Group evaluated more than 50 candidate strategies before recommending a focused set of ten programmatic actions spanning near-term, mid-term, and long-term implementation horizons. Each strategy was modeled using current energy rates, solar project finance assumptions, projected energy storage costs, and direct program implementation experience.
The analysis was grounded in a citywide rooftop solar potential survey, which identified approximately 500MW of total technical capacity across public and private structures — confirming that the 175MW long-term goal is highly achievable through rooftop development alone. Medium-scale PV systems (11–250kW), representing over 9,000 structures averaging 40kW per system, were found to be sufficient on their own to meet the full 175MW target.
Solar planning maps were developed for the majority of City-owned facilities, ranking each property by solar suitability, flagging installation type — rooftop, ground-mount, or parking canopy — and modeling system sizes to support a coordinated municipal procurement strategy. The team also assessed the treatment of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), energy storage deployment pathways, and the compounding impact of municipalization across every recommended strategy.
500MW of confirmed rooftop solar potential
Citywide analysis identified ~500MW of technical solar capacity across Boulder's public & private buildings.
20MW+ of municipal solar mapped
Facility-level solar planning maps for City-owned properties, identifying over 20MW of viable municipal solar capacity.
10-strategy roadmap across 3 distinct phases
Structured portfolio of near-, mid-, and long-term programs modeled to bridge the gap between expected business-as-usual growth and milestone targets.
Solutions Delivered
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Solar Energy Procurement Strategy
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Facility-Level Solar Planning and Mapping
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Performance-Based Incentive Program Design
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Collaborative Procurement Strategy
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Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) Planning & Strategy
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Solar Feasibility Assessment
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Battery Energy Sizing System Sizing and Assessment
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Community Solar Program Management
The Solution
The resulting Solar Action Strategies plan delivers a phased, integrated roadmap structured around Boulder's three adopted generation milestones.
Phase 1 (2018–2020) targeted 50MW through a Parallel Performance-Based Incentive designed to drive commercial and multifamily solar deployment, a Collaborative Solar Procurement program enabling the City to pool purchasing power with regional agencies, and a comprehensive education and outreach platform.
Phase 2 (2021–2030) advances to 100MW through commercial solar rooftop and green lease promotion, legislative and regulatory advocacy for Community Solar Gardens — including a carve-out for Boulder within Xcel's statewide CSG pool — expanded C-PACE financing outreach, and the development of Community Solar installations at City-owned facilities. Phase 2 programs are modeled to add 21MW above continued BAU growth.
Phase 3 (2031–2050) closes the final gap to 175MW through new tariff structures including Renewable Facility rates and Feed-in Tariffs, Bulk Energy Storage Agreements projected at 10MW of equivalent capacity, and On-Site Pay-for-Performance Storage Contracting at City facilities. New tariffs and power purchase agreements alone are projected to unlock 20MW of new generation, with energy storage strategies contributing an additional 13MW.
Across all three phases, the strategy explicitly accounts for both Xcel customer and municipalization scenarios. The plan also establishes a framework for long-term REC ownership. While financial and regulatory constraints require that RECs be sold through most of the plan horizon, the City maintains a documented goal of retaining locally produced RECs by 2050, either through municipalization or dedicated local REC purchase programs.
01
Confirmed 500MW of citywide rooftop solar potential across more than 25,000 structures, validating the technical feasibility of Boulder's 175MW local generation goal.
02
Delivered a 10-strategy action plan modeled to achieve 50MW by 2020, 100MW by 2030, and 175MW by 2050 — closing the full gap between business-as-usual growth and Boulder's adopted targets.
03
Developed facility-level solar planning maps for City-owned properties, establishing over 20MW of prioritized municipal solar capacity ready for collaborative procurement.
Results & Impact
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