Solar in Montezuma County

Territory shares by land area (Colorado Energy Office map): Empire Electric Association, about 99%. The county seat, Cortez, maps to Empire Electric Association.

The largest by area, Empire Electric Association, is a electric cooperative that banks exported solar as kWh credits that offset later use one-for-one.

Montezuma County grew about 3.2% between 2020 and 2025 (25,848 → 26,678). It has 3 communities on our map, the largest being Cortez, Mancos, Dolores.

The county is fairly uniform in elevation — Cortez near 6,180 feet and the geographic center around 6,160 feet — so conditions are relatively consistent across it.

It’s part of our Southwest Colorado region. The county center is about 255 miles from our Denver office.

Unincorporated addresses generally permit through Montezuma County; incorporated towns may run their own building departments, and in many smaller Colorado jurisdictions the State Electrical Board issues electrical permits. We confirm the right office for your address and file everything.

Businesses here are co-op members — Empire Electric Association — and that decides the commercial math: net metering is guaranteed only to 25 kW, so larger arrays are negotiated.

Southwest Colorado's business stock is tourism and hospitality around Durango and Pagosa Springs, Cortez-area agriculture, tribal enterprises, and small manufacturing and outdoor-industry shops. Co-op territory covers nearly all of it, so the co-op's non-residential rules and any battery program are the starting point. As of September 2026, business owners can still use the federal §48E credit for solar placed in service by the end of 2027, with 100% bonus depreciation restored — details are on our Montezuma County commercial page and worth a conversation with your tax advisor.