Power Plants in Montana
All 73 operable plants · EIA inventory, August 2026.
Capacity by fuel
| Fuel | Capacity | Share | Plants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hydro | 2,684 MW | 35.0% | 23 |
| Wind | 2,147 MW | 28.0% | 23 |
| Coal | 1,811 MW | 23.6% | 4 |
| Natural gas | 707 MW | 9.2% | 9 |
| Solar | 181 MW | 2.4% | 9 |
| Other | 134 MW | 1.7% | 5 |
Nameplate capacity — what the fleet could produce running flat out — not what it actually generated. A plant is filed under the fuel carrying most of its capacity. See what Montana actually generated →
Largest plants in Montana
| # | Plant | Fuel | Capacity | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ColstripRosebud County | Coal | 1,647 MW | 1984 |
| 2 | LibbyLincoln County | Hydro | 525 MW | 1975 |
| 3 | Noxon RapidsSanders County | Hydro | 488 MW | 1959 |
| 4 | Hungry HorseFlathead County | Hydro | 428 MW | 1952 |
| 5 | Clearwater Wind IRosebud County | Wind | 366 MW | 2022 |
| 6 | YellowtailBig Horn County | Hydro | 278 MW | 1966 |
| 7 | Beaver Creek Wind FacilityStillwater County | Wind | 248 MW | 2025 |
| 8 | Pryor Mountain WindCarbon County | Wind | 240 MW | 2021 |
| 9 | Selis Ksanka QlispeLake County | Hydro | 228 MW | 1938 |
| 10 | Clearwater Wind EastCuster County | Wind | 208 MW | 2024 |
Montana's generating fleet in context
Montana's power fleet holds 7,662 megawatts of capacity as of August 2026, ranking 42nd among the 50 states and DC. Hydro and wind together dominate the mix, with hydro supplying 35% across 23 plants and wind supplying 28% across another 23 plants. Coal provides 23.6% from just four plants, while natural gas, solar, and other sources make up the remainder at 9.2%, 2.4%, and 1.7% respectively.
The largest generator is the Colstrip coal plant with 1,647 megawatts across two units. Among hydro stations, Libby leads at 525 megawatts, followed by Noxon Rapids at 488 megawatts and Hungry Horse at 428 megawatts. The state's largest wind installation is Clearwater Wind I with 366 megawatts. Montana's 72 plants in service span from Big Fork, which first came online in July 1910, to the University of Montana CHP facility that began operating in December 2025.
Written from the EIA figures on this page, covering data through August 2026.
Every plant in Montana, by fuel
Hydro23 plants · 2,684 MW
All US hydro plants →| Plant | County | Capacity | Units | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Libby | Lincoln | 525 MW | 5 | 1975 |
| Noxon Rapids | Sanders | 488 MW | 5 | 1959 |
| Hungry Horse | Flathead | 428 MW | 4 | 1952 |
| Yellowtail | Big Horn | 278 MW | 4 | 1966 |
| Selis Ksanka Qlispe | Lake | 228 MW | 3 | 1938 |
| Fort Peck | McCone | 180 MW | 5 | 1943 |
| Thompson Falls | Sanders | 98 MW | 7 | 1915 |
| Morony | Cascade | 63 MW | 2 | 1930 |
| Cochrane | Cascade | 59 MW | 2 | 1958 |
| Rainbow (MT) | Cascade | 59 MW | 1 | 2013 |
| Canyon Ferry | Lewis and Clark | 58 MW | 3 | 1953 |
| Ryan | Cascade | 55 MW | 6 | 1915 |
| Holter | Cascade | 55 MW | 4 | 1918 |
| Black Eagle | Cascade | 27 MW | 3 | 1927 |
| Hauser | Lewis and Clark | 17 MW | 5 | 1911 |
| Madison Dam | Madison | 16 MW | 4 | 2021 |
| Turnbull Hydro | Teton | 13 MW | 2 | 2011 |
| Mystic | Stillwater | 12 MW | 2 | 1925 |
| Broadwater Power Project | Broadwater | 9.7 MW | 1 | 1989 |
| Tiber Dam Hydroelectric Plant | Liberty | 7.5 MW | 1 | 2004 |
| Big Fork | Flathead | 4.1 MW | 3 | 1910 |
| Flint Creek Hydroelectric LLC | Granite | 2.0 MW | 1 | 2013 |
| South Dry Creek Hydro | Carbon | 2.0 MW | 1 | 1985 |
Wind23 plants · 2,147 MW
All US wind plants →Coal4 plants · 1,811 MW
All US coal plants →| Plant | County | Capacity | Units | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colstrip | Rosebud | 1,647 MW | 2 | 1984 |
| Hardin Generator Project | Big Horn | 116 MW | 1 | 2006 |
| Colstrip Energy LP | Rosebud | 46 MW | 1 | 1990 |
| Western Sugar Cooperative - Billings | Yellowstone | 1.5 MW | 1 | 2011 |
Natural gas9 plants · 707 MW
All US natural gas plants →| Plant | County | Capacity | Units | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellowstone County Generating Station | Yellowstone | 207 MW | 18 | 2024 |
| Dave Gates Generating Station | Deer Lodge | 203 MW | 3 | 2011 |
| Culbertson Generation Station | Roosevelt | 108 MW | 1 | 2010 |
| Glendive GT | Dawson | 84 MW | 2 | 1979 |
| Basin Creek Plant | Silver Bow | 55 MW | 9 | 2006 |
| Miles City GT | Custer | 23 MW | 1 | 1972 |
| Lewis & Clark | Richland | 19 MW | 2 | 2016 |
| University of Montana CHP | Missoula | 6.1 MW | 3 | 2025 |
| Phillips 66 Billings Refinery | Yellowstone | 1.6 MW | 1 | 2007 |
Solar9 plants · 181 MW
All US solar plants →| Plant | County | Capacity | Units | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apex Solar | Beaverhead | 80 MW | 1 | 2023 |
| MTSUN | Yellowstone | 80 MW | 1 | 2023 |
| GCC Trident Solar Project | Gallatin | 4.0 MW | 2 | 2022 |
| Black Eagle Solar, LLC | Cascade | 3.0 MW | 1 | 2017 |
| Great Divide Solar, LLC | Lewis and Clark | 3.0 MW | 1 | 2017 |
| Green Meadow Solar, LLC | Lewis and Clark | 3.0 MW | 1 | 2017 |
| Magpie Solar, LLC | Golden Valley | 3.0 MW | 1 | 2017 |
| South Mills Solar, LLC | Big Horn | 3.0 MW | 1 | 2017 |
| River Bend Solar, LLC (MT) | Stillwater | 2.0 MW | 1 | 2017 |
Other5 plants · 134 MW
All US other plants →| Plant | County | Capacity | Units | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellowstone Energy LP | Yellowstone | 68 MW | 1 | 1995 |
| OREG 1 Inc | Roosevelt | 30 MW | 4 | 2006 |
| OREG 2 Inc | Roosevelt | 30 MW | 4 | 2008 |
| Flathead Landfill to Gas Energy Facility | Flathead | 3.2 MW | 2 | 2009 |
| Stoltze CoGen1 | Flathead | 2.8 MW | 1 | 2013 |
Sorted by nameplate capacity within each fuel. “Online” is the year the plant’s earliest surviving unit entered service.