Nameplate capacity
488 MW
Rank in Montana
#3
of 73 plants
In service since
1959
September 1959
Details
- Primary fuel
- Hydro
- Technology
- Conventional Hydroelectric
- Operator
- Avista Corp
- County
- Sanders County
- Generating units
- 5
- Share of state capacity
- 6.37%
- Rank among hydro plants in Montana
- #2 of 23
- EIA plant code
- 2199
Generating units
| Unit | Technology | Nameplate | Summer | Online | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 114 MW | 134 MW | 1977 | Operating |
| 1 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 99 MW | 114 MW | 1959 | Operating |
| 3 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 99 MW | 114 MW | 1959 | Operating |
| 4 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 99 MW | 114 MW | 1960 | Operating |
| 2 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 77 MW | 105 MW | 1959 | Operating |
Nameplate is the maximum rated output; summer capacity is what the unit can reliably deliver on a hot day, which is typically lower.
Similarly sized plants in Montana
| Colstrip | Coal | 1,647 MW |
| Libby | Hydro | 525 MW |
| Hungry Horse | Hydro | 428 MW |
| Clearwater Wind I | Wind | 366 MW |
About this data
From EIA’s inventory of operable generators, May 2026 release. Capacity is nameplate — the maximum rated output of the equipment, not what the plant actually generates over a year, which depends on how often it runs. A 488 MW solar plant and a 488 MW nuclear plant have the same entry here and produce very different amounts of electricity.
“In service since” is the earliest in-service date among the units still listed, so a site rebuilt around newer equipment can read as younger than the site itself. All Montana power plants · What Montana actually generates