Polis defends data centers as Colorado juggles energy demands

ASPEN, Colo. — Colorado's Democratic governor, Jared Polis, defended data centers, touted oil and gas rules and bemoaned climate change in a recent interview in this mountain town.

Why it matters: Colorado has long been a microcosm of the nation's debates on energy, AI and the effects of a warming planet.

• Polis, who is leaving office in January due to term limits, has spent nearly eight years governing through each of those fights.

Inside the room: In an interview with Axios on stage at the Aspen Ideas Festival last weekend, Polis argued the backlash against data centers is aimed more at AI itself than the infrastructure needed to power it.

"Of course, there needs to be data centers," Polis said. "As long as you can show me it's going to reduce our utility rates and be consistent with our water use, then absolutely we want them here."

• "There's a general frustration about what the rise of AI means," Polis said. "I think that's what is giving people pause."

State of play: Colorado has become one of the country's clearest examples of an "all of the above" energy economy.

• Renewable electricity generation has more than tripled over the past decade even as natural gas remains a dominant fuel, a mix that has shaped Polis' pragmatic approach to energy.

Flashback: Colorado was ground zero for oil and gas fights in the 2010s.

• Polis backed ballot measures to limit drilling near homes before becoming governor, but instead pursued sweeping regulatory changes rather than drilling restrictions once in office.
• In Aspen, he said "the world evolved to me" as Colorado tightened rules while continuing to produce oil and gas.

Friction point: Despite leading a state with a growing oil and gas sector, Polis criticized the Trump administration for keeping coal-fired power plants in Colorado operating after they were set to shut down.

• Coal's share of electricity in Colorado went from 60% in 2014 to just 27% in 2024.
• Polis said the administration's efforts to revive coal are likely to be short-lived.
• "The truth of the matter is, how long are you going to subsidize and how long will people put up with subsidizing the highest cost form of energy that's on the grid?" Polis said. "Not very long."

Zoom out: The issue Polis spoke about most personally wasn't energy production. It was how climate change is reshaping Colorado.

"The way we did things 50 years ago simply won't lead to the same positive outcomes of diverse wildlife and healthy landscapes that make Colorado special unless we are very thoughtful about how we do this for the future."

It was a tragic irony that the same day of the interview, three firefighters were killed fighting a wildfire three hours west of Aspen on the border with Utah.

• Winds were gusting up to 35 miles per hour in Aspen, and even more where the fire was spreading.
• Later that night and into the next day, those same winds swept wildfire smoke into Aspen, prompting air quality to plummet to levels comparable to what major cities like Delhi experience on their most polluted days.

Threat level: Climate change has increased wildfire risk across much of the West, making fires one of the defining issues of Polis' tenure.

• He pointed to Colorado's investment in its own aerial firefighting fleet, arguing the state can no longer depend on neighboring states for aircraft because wildfires are worsening across the West.
• "The best thing to do is hit it quickly before it has a chance to become large," he said.

What we're watching: One of Polis' final major challenges will be negotiating new Colorado River operating rules as the region's megadrought stretches into a third decade.

• The seven states that depend on the river face an Oct. 1 deadline to reach agreement before the federal government steps in.

"If there can't be an agreement, it's not something that's going to be resolved in a month or a year," Polis said. "It will be many years, and what I mean by that is litigation from all sides."

One Western thing: Wolves are controversial in these parts, with wildlife proponents calling to reintroduce them — which Polis has done — and livestock producers bristling over wolf attacks on their animals.

In a concluding round of "would you rather" questions, Axios asked Polis whether he would rather host a town hall on wolves or data centers.

• "Oh boy, stumped me on that one," Polis said with a laugh. "That's a tough one. I think I'd probably rather host one on wolves these days."

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