Power Ahead Colorado’s work to support small heat pump contractors while building the skilled workforce needed for the region’s clean energy transition continues to gain momentum.

The program of the Denver Regional Council of Governments, funded by a nearly $200 million EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant, provides free energy advising, upcoming financial incentives and a Colorado Contractor Hub, according to a news release.

The free platform connects vetted contractors with customers and delivers training, leads and business resources aimed at helping small HVAC firms scale.

Independent Power in Boulder and Just Heat Pumps in the metro Denver area are among the early participants in the Hub. Officials at both companies said the program is helping them grow amid rising demand for efficient electric heating and cooling.

Power Ahead Colorado places heavy emphasis on workforce development.

Erin Shine, co-founder and integrator at Just Heat Pumps, said finding skilled tradespeople for heat pump installation has been challenging.

“Finding workforce trades people and skilled trades people in this space is one of the hardest things I’ve ever dealt with or seen in 20 years, and it’s quite expensive for a small company to have a solid team there,” Shine said. “So I know they have a plan in place and they’re on the way to training thousands of installers and that would be incredible as a help.”

The Contractor Hub includes a Small Business Scaling Program and an Electrification Boot Camp. It offers certifications, an AI assistant, marketing tools and up to $1,500 in business support. Program materials state the Hub was developed with direct input from contractors to make electrification projects more accessible and affordable.

Xerxes Steirer, visionary at Just Heat Pumps and holder of a PhD in applied physics, said the support goes beyond leads.

“They’re helping with training, they’re providing leads, clearer program rules, small business support,” he said. “So they’re helping anyone who’s doing really good business survive this transition.”

Power Ahead Colorado’s incentives, scheduled to launch fully in a few weeks, will layer on top of existing utility rebates. Both companies are active on the Hub and accepting new customer connections.

Heat pumps provide steady, even temperatures throughout a home, eliminate hot and cold spots and serve as an all-in-one heating and cooling solution, according to program materials. Homeowners with working systems often upgrade for better efficiency, lower long-term energy bills, improved comfort and reduced emissions, with modern cold-climate models performing reliably in Colorado winters, the materials state.

Regarding safety, contractors note that eliminating indoor combustion removes even minimal risk. Steirer said his company regularly sees the consequences of aging systems.

“We go in and see furnaces that haven’t seen maintenance in 20 years. And we actually tear out those heat exchangers and take pictures of the cracked heat exchangers,” Steirer said. “Just eliminating gas entirely. Remove one burn source and it also takes that minimal risk and makes it zero.”

According to the EPA, if fuel-burning appliances are maintained and used properly, the amount of carbon monoxide produced is usually not hazardous.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that nearly all carbon monoxide deaths linked to installed natural gas furnaces involve venting failures, improper installation or lack of maintenance. Properly installed and annually serviced central gas furnaces carry minimal risk when code-compliant. Heat pumps eliminate on-site combustion risk entirely.

Heat pump installations have been outselling traditional furnaces nationally.

Independent Power, a family-owned company since 1996, provides full-service clean energy solutions including solar, battery storage and heat pumps from its Boulder headquarters at 2830 Wilderness Place.

Steirer founded Just Heat Pumps after a poor installation experience at his own home.

Just Heat Pumps, based in Edgewater, specializes exclusively in heat pump design, installation and rebate navigation for Front Range customers.