Cherokee Station

Location: Just north of downtown Denver.

Plant Description: Cherokee Station is a coal-fired, steam-electric generating station with four operating units. The plant also is capable of burning natural gas as fuel.

Power Production Capabilities: 717 megawatts (MW): Unit 1 – 107 MW, Unit 2 – 106 MW, Unit 3 – 152 MW, and Unit 4 – 352 MW.

Fuel Source: Low-sulfur coal supplied by several mines in western Colorado, including Twentymile Mine, ColoWyo Mine, West Elk Mine and Powderhorn Mine.

Plant History: Cherokee Station began operating in 1957 when Unit 1 went into service. It was followed by Unit 2 in 1959, Unit 3 in 1962 and Unit 4 in 1968.

Interesting Features: Cherokee Station is one of Xcel Energy's largest Colorado power plants in terms of power production capability.

Environmental Highlights: Air emissions are controlled at Cherokee Station by baghouses installed on all four units. Baghouses act like giant vacuum cleaners, removing particulate emissions from the flue gas by more than 99 percent.

Units 1, 3 and 4 have low-NOx burners that reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions by about 40 percent, and Unit 2 has Over Fire Air equipment that also reduces NOx.

Units 1 and 2 also have dry sorbent injection (DSI) systems, and the two larger units, Units 3 and 4, have lime spray dryers. These controls, added as part of Xcel Energy’s voluntary Denver Metro Emission Reduction Plan, will reduce Cherokee's SO2 emissions by about 70 percent from uncontrolled levels.

Cherokee Station uses and returns water to the Platte River, and the plant's permit has strict standards for all water discharged back into the river. Water is regularly monitored for pH, temperature, chlorine levels, copper, zinc, chromium and suspended solids. In addition, discharge waters routinely undergo whole effluent toxicity (WET) testing to ensure that plant practices do not result in discharges that may be harmful to the environment. We also have taken steps to reduce the plant's fresh water consumption. Cherokee is the largest customer of Denver Water's Re-use Water Plant, using up to 5,2000 acre-feet of recycled water per year, which reduces the plant's use of fresh water.

Community Information: Cherokee Station hosts a number of tours and special programs throughout the year for various groups and organizations in the Denver metro area. Plant employees also are active supporters of United Way.

Contact Information:

• Plant Information and Tour Requests — 1-800-895-4999
• Media Inquiries — 303-294-2300