Lewis reported on December 26 2023 that Florida-based NextEra Energy’s 775 MW Clearwater Wind projects, once fully online, will add an additional 311 MW. So that will put wind’s nameplate capacity in Montana at 1,790 MW – that’s 159 MW more than coal.
In 2022, according to the EIA, Montana ranked 10th among US states for the largest share of electricity generated from renewables, at around 53%. (Hydropower is a big source of renewable power in the state.) Much of the power that Montana produces is transmitted to utilities in Oregon and Washington. Utilities in those states are transitioning to procuring clean power, thanks to laws that require them to divest from fossil fuels.
But when it comes to in-state generation, coal still has a higher capacity factor. Coal-fired power plants provided the largest share – 42% – of Montana’s electricity generation in 2022, followed by hydropower at 38%, wind power at 15%, natural gas at 2%, and petroleum coke at nearly 2%.
Those percentages are shifting as coal plants retire, and the EIA says that nearly all of the power projects lining up to come online in Montana are onshore wind. Plus, a Montana court ruled in August that the state must consider climate change and environmental protections in the approval process for new energy projects.
Max Greene of clean energy advocacy organization Renewable Northwest told the Montana Free Press that interest in Montana’s wind power will continue to grow – provided that transmission capacity (and battery storage) grows too:
- "Most of that east-to-west transmission is pretty well subscribed at this point.
- We’re going to have to look at what opportunities will be out there for other ways to develop this important resource."
Top comment by Arno Hayes:
"Nobody should ever be surprised when any given state or country has policies that encourage alternatives locally, but tries to discourage their adoption elsewhere, where normally they export fossil fuels. Ever. If that surprises anybody, then they don't understand the type of business that likes to dabble in politics for profit."
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