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DEVELOPMENT FACTS

Key Facts

Developer
Caithness Beaver Creek, LLC
Location
Stillwater and Sweet Grass Counties, Montana
Capacity
Four 80 MW Qualified Facilities (“QFs”) with a net output of 320 MW
Target COD
October 2020 (all four projects)
Technology
GE-2.5 MW 116M rotor turbines
Storage
160 MWh of storage, consisting of 40 MWh per QF
Configuration
Four 80 MW projects
EPC Contractor
TBD
Electric Interconnection
NorthWestern Energy
PPA Term
Anticipate 15 years

Located about an hour and a half west of Billings, MT, the Beaver Creek Wind Farms will be comprised of four separate projects that deliver significant economic and environmental benefits to the State of Montana:

  • Beaver Creek I
  • Beaver Creek II
  • Beaver Creek III
  • Beaver Creek IV

The four wind farms deploy 128 wind turbines across 20,000 acres to generate 320 megawatts of clean energy, enough to power 227,000. The $500 million combined facilities will play an important role in harnessing the power of wind to strengthen Montana’s economy, advance the state’s renewable energy capacity, and bolster America’s energy security.

In June 2018, the four Beaver Creek entities, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, entered into a single Large Generator Interconnection Agreement (‘LGIA’) with NorthWestern Energy (‘NWE’). A total of 315 MW will be deliverable using the existing capacity on the 230 kV line that is four miles from the projects. The projects will be designated as a network resource.

Wind with Storage Used to Avoid Peakers

  • Energy from the four 80 MW wind farms will be used to:
    • First, to shift production from the off-peak to the on-peak periods using the 160 MWh storage system;
    • Second, provide ‘firm’ deliveries to the grid;
    • Third, self-provide ancillary services.

Benefits of Wind with Storage

  • The storage resource will provide products and services such as:
    • A fully renewable energy storage solution (independent of grid charging)
    • Frequency regulation
    • Frequency response
    • Firming
    • Ramp rate control
    • Voltage control
    • VAR control