PSE IN MONTANA:
BATTLE BUTTE SOLAR PROJECT
The Battle Butte Solar Project will be located in the high plains of Stillwater County, Montana, about 15 miles north of the town of Columbus and 7 miles south of Rapelje on both sides of the Rapelje Highway.​
The Battle Butte Solar Project will be Puget Sound Energy’s (PSE) second investment in Stillwater County, Montana and sits on about 1,400 acres of private land purchased by PSE. The project will use solar modules to produce electricity that will be directed to the electrical transmission grid.​
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The project will consist of over 350,000 bi-facial solar modules on single axis trackers covering approximately 1,200 acres along with a small operations building, substation, and transmission line to PSE’s Beaver Creek Wind Project. It has a maximum capacity of 130 MW which is enough energy to power about 20,000 typical homes.
Learn more about the Battle Butte Solar Project here >>>
In August 2025, Puget Sound Energy (PSE) announced that its Beaver Creek Wind Project, a utility-scale wind project located on the high plains in Stillwater County, Montana, is now fully operational.
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Beaver Creek has a nameplate capacity of 248 megawatts (MW), enough energy to power about 83,000 homes a year. Additionally, there will be an opportunity to add wind turbines in neighboring Sweet Grass County. Montana wind has a high production rate that is especially valuable during extremely cold weather in the Pacific Northwest, when high pressure systems mean that Washington wind farms do not produce much energy.
Learn more about the Beaver Creek Wind Project here >>>
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POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENTS
BEAVER CREEK WIND PROJECT
As PSE works to meet statutory clean energy obligations outlined in Washington’s Clean Energy Transformation Act and aspires to be a Beyond Net Zero carbon company by 2045, Montana continues to play a strategic role by providing a diverse supply of energy.
PSE has invested funds to partner with Montana energy producers and continues to seek additional opportunities to invest in energy resources to meet growing energy demand.
Haymaker Wind Project PPA
“We are proud to be a partner in developing Montana’s wind resources—this project is another milestone in our continued investment in the state’s energy economy. This agreement with Clearway helps us meet some of the most ambitious clean energy laws in the nation while delivering on our customer’s expectations for energy that is safe, reliable and affordable. ”
-Ron Roberts, PSE Senior Vice President of Energy Resources, retired
In July of 2024, Puget Sound Energy announced a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Clearway Energy Group (“Clearway”) for power from the 315 MW wind farm, Haymaker Wind Project, under development in Wheatland and Meagher County in Montana.
315 MW translates into enough energy to power about 116,000 average homes.
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The wind project will create numerous construction jobs, permanent jobs, and will generate millions of dollars of spending in the local community, including, for the full size of the project, millions in landowner payments and over $100 million in property tax revenue over the life of the project.
Wind energy from Haymaker will be delivered to PSE’s customers using existing PSE transmission. Learn more about the Haymaker Wind Project here >>>
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Clearwater Wind Project PPA
“We’ve been saying Montana has great wind resources and this agreement demonstrates PSE’s continued investment in Montana’s energy economy.”
-Ron Roberts, PSE vice president of Energy Supply, retired
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Learn more here >>>
“This is an important step forward in diversifying our regional economy, creating new jobs and bolstering local tax revenues for our schools, roads and county services. This is a Made in Montana solution.”
-Bob Lee, Rosebud County Commissioner
In 2021, PSE signed a 20-year power purchase agreement to add 350 MW of wind energy from the Clearwater Wind Project, based in Rosebud, Custer, and Garfield Counties.
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From the middle of November 2022 through the end of March 2023 the Clearwater Wind project operated at an average capacity factor of over 50%, delivering valuable energy to PSE’s system and customers. This production coincided with a period of cold winter temperatures, increased electricity demand, relatively low production from PSE’s wind facilities in Washington, and extraordinarily high market power prices. Energy delivered from Clearwater Wind during this period reduced PSE’s power supply costs for our customers by approximately $51 million dollars.
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This power purchase agreement is one example of PSE’s ability to provide a long-term commitment and investment into Montana’s “all of the above” energy economy.
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About Clearwater Wind Project:
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Phase 1, which is operational now, consists of 365 MW of renewable energy. The entire wind project will be capable of generating up to 750 MW of energy – enough to power approximately 140,000 households a year.
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The wind project spans three counties: Rosebud, Garfield and Custer.
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Clearwater Wind is creating local employment opportunities – including up to 350 construction jobs and approximately 20 full-time operational jobs.
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The full project is also expected to deliver substantial economic benefits to the region, providing more than $400 million in support through jobs, additional tax revenue and landowner payments.
In 2020, Puget Sound Energy signed a hydroelectric PPA with Energy Keepers, Inc. the tribally owned corporation of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes in Montana. The Selis Ksanka Qlispe hydroelectric project, located at Flathead Lake in Montana, is the first tribally owned hydroelectric dam in the U.S. Through this agreement, PSE will purchase 40 megawatts of zero carbon energy produced by the Selis Ksanka Qlispe hydroelectric project.
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This historic agreement runs through 2035, supporting Montana's workforce and energy economy while fostering new partnerships and resource innovations.
NextEra Clearwater Wind Project
Rosebud County, Montana
Energy Keepers, Inc. Hydroelectric PPA
“We are happy to partner with PSE in this historic agreement. This agreement will assist Energy Keepers in the development of additional zero carbon resources and thus enable increased partnerships as the region moves towards a cleaner future.”
- Daniel Howlett, Energy Keepers, Inc.​