Discovery Ski Area goes solar
Discovery Ski Area anticipates a new solar array supported by a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant will offset the electricity demand for one of its primary chair lifts by 70% — and shave $11,000 off the business’ annual power bill. Funding available to support such projects has increased substantially since Congress passed the Inflation Reduction…
Latest ENERGY Reporting
Melville ranch adds solar, joins growing number in Montana taking advantage of federal grants
From the roof of J Bar L’s barn, a glint of glass reflected from where newly installed solar panels convert sunlight into electricity for powering lights, running power tools and pumping water to stock tanks for the little over a thousand cows that will winter on their ranch in Melville, north of Big Timber.
Montana attorney general urges the EPA to scrap CO2 rule aimed at the energy sector
In a 55-page letter dated Aug. 8, the signatories argued that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is overstepping its authority by imposing strict carbon dioxide standards on the energy sector. The EPA has described the rule as an effort to safeguard public health and eliminate 617 million tons of atmosphere-warming carbon dioxide emissions from one…
The Battle for Clean Energy in Coal Country
Montana has a long history of making money by extracting and exporting its natural resources, namely coal. State politicians and Montana’s largest electricity utility company seem set on keeping it that way.
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MORE ENERGY REPORTING
How the 68th Legislature shaped Montana’s energy policy
As the dust settles on the 2023 Legislature, Montana Free Press takes a look at the proposals likely to shape the state’s energy future for decades to come. Prominent themes include local control, the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions, and lawmakers’ frustration with the judicial branch.
NorthWestern Energy’s ‘historic’ rate increase request
The week before the Public Service Commission was set to hold a hearing on NorthWestern Energy’s proposed $120 million electricity and natural gas rate increase, the utility company announced it had reached a settlement agreement with four parties previously opposed to its proposal. As a result, Montana’s elected, all-Republican utility board spent much of last week…
What was in the 1993 State Energy Policy, and why did lawmakers repeal it?
Shortly after House Bill 170, a measure titled “repeal state energy policy,” passed along party lines last month, Gov. Greg Gianforte signed it into law. With Gianforte’s signature, a 30-year-old piece of legislative guidance outlining a vision for the state’s energy future will disappear from Montana Code Annotated. So, what was in the State Energy Policy,…
Yellowstone County judge revokes Laurel gas plant permit
A Yellowstone County judge has revoked the air quality permit that the state issued for a gas plant NorthWestern Energy is building in Laurel, effectively halting construction of the project.
PSC greenlights NorthWestern Energy’s corporate restructuring plan
NorthWestern Energy, Montana’s largest monopoly utility, has asked government regulators to separate its operations in Montana from its operations in Nebraska and South Dakota. The investor-owned utility said the plan will provide regulators with a more focused look at its finances and serve Montana customers by insulating them from operations in other states.
NorthWestern Energy to increase ownership share in Colstrip
NorthWestern Energy said Monday it will acquire Washington-based utility Avista’s ownership stake in the aging Colstrip coal power plant, a move the company said would keep the plant in operation through the end of the decade.

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