By Nick Engelfried, Sierra Club
Since the 1970s, a coal-burning power plant called Colstrip has towered over Southeast Montana. At one point, it generated over 2,000 megawatts of electricity for the region. For years, the rationale for Colstrip seemed self-evident. Its power was abundant, reliable, and above all, cheap. However, that narrative has shifted.
Colstrip’s electricity is no longer inexpensive. In fact, it would cost NorthWestern Energy, Montana’s largest utility and the plant’s soon-to-be majority owner, millions to keep the coal plant open. It could cut ratepayer bills by shifting to renewables. Instead, it wants customers to pay for running Colstrip into the 2040s.
“Montana has some of the country’s best wind and solar resources,” said Anne Hedges, executive director of the Montana Environmental Information Center. “There are many ways NorthWestern could replace Colstrip with renewables, but it chooses not to.”
