Mesa County, Colorado: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy
Home to Grand Junction, Fruita and Palisade
Local rules on data centers are on the record in Mesa County. Mesa County is home to Grand Junction, Fruita and Palisade. The Moratorium Tracker holds 1 local measure here (1 in force); the latest is “One-year data center moratorium”. 202 MW of new generation is planned here across 3 units, led by GRVA bn, LLC (solar), the 9th largest pipeline among Colorado's counties. 2 MW of it is already under construction or built. Unemployment was 4.6% in August 2026, against 3.2% in 2019. Construction employs 5,025, up 4.2% since 2019, and construction is 1.4 times as concentrated here as in the U.S. economy.
Cities and towns in Mesa County
Mesa County is home to Grand Junction, Fruita and Palisade.
Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Clifton, Fruitvale, Loma, Orchard Mesa, Redlands.
Residents are 2025 Census estimates for the part of each city, town or township inside this county. Census publishes no annual estimate for unincorporated communities.
What changed in Mesa County
1st = the most. Ranks cover counties with a value on record.
| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Colorado |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 156,007 | 162,845 | ▲ 4.4% | 11th of 64 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 63,636 | 66,902 | ▲ 5.1% | 29th of 64 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $45,857 | $59,480 | ▲ 29.7% | — |
| Construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 4,821 | 5,025 | ▲ 4.2% | 24th of 38 by growth |
| Electrical contractor jobs (2019 → 2025) | 565 | 634 | ▲ 12.2% | — |
| Data processing and hosting jobs (2019 → 2025) | 51 | 40 | ▼ 21.6% | — |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 3.2% | 4.6% | ▲ 1.4pts | — |
| Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 10 MW | — | |
| Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 2 MW | — | |
| Planned generation (Aug 2026) | — | 202 MW | 360% of today's fleet | 9th of 18 by size |
Electrical contractors employ 634, up 12.2% since 2019 against up 9.0% statewide, at an average $63,482 a year. 2 MW has retired here since 2019, including Grand Valley Project Power Plant (hydro, 2 MW, 2021). Owners plan to retire 27 MW more by 2035, led by Fruita in 2028. 10 MW of that came online in 2019 or later, mostly solar. Employers here counted 66,902 jobs in 2025, up 5.1% from 2019. Its power plants have 56 MW of capacity, 47% of it natural gas. Public Service Co of Colorado is the largest utility serving Mesa County, one of 5 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 15.05¢/kWh in 2024. 162,845 people live here, up 4.4% since 2020.
Who powers Mesa County
Net change in operating capacity since 2019: +8 MW. Colors follow the fuel legend above.
Utilities with service territory in Mesa County
| Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Service Co of Colorado | Investor Owned | Bundled | 1,365,053 | 15.05¢ | 44% |
| Holy Cross Electric Assn, Inc | Cooperative | Bundled | 49,982 | 12.04¢ | 41% |
| Grand Valley Power | Cooperative | Bundled | 17,268 | 15.94¢ | 29% |
| San Miguel Power Assn, Inc | Cooperative | Bundled | 12,154 | 16.32¢ | 45% |
| WAPA-- Western Area Power Administration | Federal | Bundled | — | — | 72% |
Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers.
Operating power plants 10
| Technology | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 27 MW | 47% |
| Hydro | 21 MW | 38% |
| Solar | 8 MW | 14% |
| Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fruita | Public Service Co of Colorado | Natural gas | 27 MW | 1973 |
| Upper Molina | U S Bureau of Reclamation | Hydro | 10 MW | 1962 |
| Lower Molina | U S Bureau of Reclamation | Hydro | 6 MW | 1962 |
| Vinelands Power Plant | Grand Valley Power LLC | Hydro | 4 MW | 2022 |
| USS Fruita Solar LLC CSG | United States Solar Corporation | Solar | 2 MW | 2024 |
| Mesa PV1 | CleanCapital Holdings | Solar | 2 MW | 2014 |
Planned generation 3
| Plant | Technology | MW | Status | Year | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Valley Solar Generation and BESS | Solar Photovoltaic | 100 MW | Approvals pending | 2029 | GRVA bn, LLC |
| Grand Valley Solar Generation and BESS | Batteries | 100 MW | Approvals pending | 2029 | GRVA bn, LLC |
| Pivot Solar 57 LLC | Solar Photovoltaic | 2 MW | Under construction (>50%) | 2026 | Pivot Energy |
Retired since 2019
| Plant | Technology | MW | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Valley Project Power Plant | Hydro | 2 MW | 2021 |
Scheduled to retire
| Plant | Technology | MW | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fruita | Natural gas | 27 MW | 2028 |
The Mesa County labor market
| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 66,902 | $59,480 | 1.00 |
| Construction | 5,025 | $73,589 | 1.42 |
| Electrical contractors | 634 | $63,482 | 1.31 |
| Electric utilities | 165 | $129,481 | 0.91 |
| Data processing and hosting | 40 | $94,540 | 0.19 |
Concentration is the BLS location quotient: 1.0 means the industry holds the same share of local jobs as it does nationally. Industry rows count private employers; cells BLS suppresses are left out.
Data centers and local rules in Mesa County
Local measures 1
| Measure | Status | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-year data center moratorium | In force | 2026-09 |
Mesa County and its neighbors
Of the 7 counties that border Mesa County, Montrose County carries the most build-out activity: data centers, planned generation and operating plants combined.
| County | Population | Jobs since 2019 | Operating MW | Planned MW | Data centers | Local measures |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mesa County | 162,845 | ▲ 5.1% | 56 MW | 202 MW | — | 1 |
| Delta County | 32,178 | ▲ 2.9% | 80 MW | — | — | — |
| Garfield County | 63,474 | ▲ 6.0% | 82 MW | — | — | — |
| Grand County UT | 9,790 | ▲ 12.6% | — | — | — | 1 |
| Gunnison County | 17,439 | ▲ 8.3% | 86 MW | — | — | — |
| Montrose County | 44,591 | ▲ 12.7% | 228 MW | — | — | — |
| Pitkin County | 16,625 | ▲ 5.7% | 5 MW | — | — | — |
| San Juan County UT | 14,542 | ▲ 9.8% | 134 MW | — | — | — |
More of Colorado
Mesa County, answered from the record
Who provides electricity in Mesa County, Colorado?
5 utilities have service territory in Mesa County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Public Service Co of Colorado, Holy Cross Electric Assn, Inc, Grand Valley Power, San Miguel Power Assn, Inc. The largest, Public Service Co of Colorado, charged residential customers 15.05¢/kWh on average in 2024.
What county is Grand Junction, CO in?
Grand Junction is in Mesa County, Colorado. About 71,827 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What county is Fruita, CO in?
Fruita is in Mesa County, Colorado. About 14,003 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What power plants are in Mesa County?
10 operating plants with 56 MW of capacity. The largest is Fruita (27 MW, natural gas).
How much new power is planned in Mesa County?
202 MW across 3 units in the August 2026 EIA-860M inventory, 2 MW of it under construction or built. The largest owner is GRVA bn, LLC.
Are there data centers in Mesa County?
The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Mesa County.
Is Mesa County adding jobs?
Employers counted 66,902 jobs in 2025 against 63,636 in 2019 (+5.1%, BLS QCEW). Construction went from 4,821 to 5,025.
Does Mesa County have a data center moratorium?
The SAVRN Moratorium Tracker holds 1 local measure for Mesa County, 1 in force.