Colorado and the nation face increasing energy demands and critical mineral supply needs. These pressures are amplified by population growth, energy-intensive AI, a shrinking energy supply portfolio, and geopolitical challenges that have fundamentally altered historical supply chains. In Colorado specifically, approximately a quarter our electric energy is supplied by coal.[1] However, public policy decisions will result in this supply largely going offline over the next five years as a result of premature coal fleet retirements. The already significant gap left by these retirements has been made even more challenging by the rise of AI technology which is expected to increase energy consumption by 6.7%-12% by 2028, according to a Department of Energy Report…