Wind Power News: Montana
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They are the products of the organizations or individuals noted and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch.
Montana wind farm exempted from frequency response rule
FERC ruled last week that an existing Montana wind farm awaiting a new interconnection is exempt from a recent commission order requiring all new generators to be capable of providing primary frequency response. The commission’s Nov. 15 ruling said Order 842 does not apply to NaturEner’s Glacier Wind Farm II, which has been in the queue for Enbridge’s Montana-Alberta Tie-Line (MATL) since 2013 and currently the only resource to request to join the 214-mile, 230-kV AC line extending from Lethbridge, . . . Complete story »
Neighbors sue to block planned Montana wind farm near Crazy Mountains
LIVINGSTON – Neighbors of a planned wind farm in southwestern Montana are suing to block the project. The Livingston Enterprise reports the Crazy Mountain Wind Farm would harvest 80 megawatts of electricity from 24 wind towers near the Sweet Grass and Park county line. Construction is scheduled to begin next spring. The lawsuit filed late last month in Park County is by four neighboring property owners with ranching and agricultural land. They allege the wind project will threaten wetlands, migratory birds, . . . Complete story »
Montana wind energy project paused
HELENA – A developer is proposing a 320-megawatt wind energy project in south-central Montana. This comes with battery storage for the power it produces, but the project is on hold due to an impasse in negotiations over rates with NorthWestern Energy. The Beaver Creek project would include four, 80-megawatt wind farms north of Columbus. They will have battery storage that enables the project to provide a steady flow of power. Developers say it would create 350 jobs during construction as . . . Complete story »
Wind farm moving in North of Springdale
An 80-megawatt wind facility is moving in just North of Springdale. KULR-8’s Luke Laster was at a meeting tonight in Big Timber where people for and against the project were in attendance. The Crazy Mountain Wind Project is planned to span over both Park and Sweetgrass counties and is expected to entail around 24 wind turbines altogether. Some residents are for the project, and believe it will bring in work for Montana laborers. Adam Renz, Government Relations Representative for Pattern . . . Complete story »
Montana developer eyes PURPA contracts for 320 MW of wind, 640 MWh of storage
Dive Brief: A renewable energy developer filed with the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) this month to build 320 MW of wind and 160 MW/640 MWh of battery storage spread over four separate projects in the state. Caithness Beaver Creek wants to develop the four 80 MW wind projects and 40 MW/160 MWh batteries as qualifying facilities (QFs) under the Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act (PURPA) after negotiations over capacity payments broke down with Northwestern Energy, Montana’s largest utility. PURPA requires . . . Complete story »
Montana wind power: Big projects on tap in central Montana
MARTINSDALE – From the top of Gordon Butte, Montana’s sparsely populated upper Musselshell River Valley stretches below, dotted with the occasional irrigation pivot, ranch house or wind turbine. But if the plans of renewable-power developers pan out, the butte and the valley will become major construction sites – a large wind farm, or two, and a $1 billion hydropower project that serves as a “battery” storage to complement intermittent wind power. “As we look to export more and more wind . . . Complete story »
One of Great Falls’ first wind turbines coming down
Great Falls College MSU is removing the wind turbine from its campus. Deconstruction is expected to be complete next week. The wind turbine was purchased used from the University of North Dakota. It had been installed at the wind farm near Raynesford before being moved to GFC MSU. The turbine, which is no longer operational, stopped working in November and the cost to fix and continually maintain it is prohibitive. The purchase and installation of the wind turbine was paid . . . Complete story »
Restrict blight of wind farms
We don’t need the blight of wind farms in Montana. Our largest industry is tourism because of Montana’s beauty. Drive across Minnesota and Kansas and you will agree about the blight. Physical footprint of about 12 acres per megawatt produced by coal, gas and nuclear. Solar and wind are much more land intensive using 46.5 and 70.6 acres per megawatt produced. As of 2015 wind turbines accounted for only 4.7 percent of total electricity demand. Each turbine has a lifespan . . . Complete story »
Minnesota company to build 30-turbine wind farm in central Montana
A proposed central Montana wind farm will provide power to NorthWestern Energy under a contract announced this week. Minnesota-based Allete Clean Energy announced it will build the 80-megawatt South Peak wind farm near Great Falls and deliver power to NorthWestern Energy for 15 years under a power purchase agreement. It’s enough power to electrify about 26,000 homes. The project will be located next to Spion Kop, a 40-megawatt wind farm owned by NorthWestern near Geyser. Allete (pronounced A-leet) will use . . . Complete story »
Winds of change: What will power the Northwest’s future?
MARTINSDALE, Mont. – Carl Borgquist wants to spend more than $1 billion to transform a remote butte fringed by pine trees into a giant water battery. This might seem a madman’s folly if not for the roller-coaster nature of wind and solar power production, which can soar when few need electricity, then fade in the evenings when people come home to turn on the lights. When demand is low, Borquist would store energy in the form of water pumped from a . . . Complete story »
