| Glacier Wind Farm | |
| Name Official: | Glacier Wind Farm |
| Coordinates: | 48.5078°N -112.0908°W |
| Country: | United States |
| Location: | Glacier and Toole County near Ethridge, Montana |
| Status: | O |
| Construction Began: | July 2007 |
| Commissioned: | Oct 2008 (phase I), Oct 2009 (phase II) |
| Cost: | $500 million |
| Owner: | NaturEner |
| Operator: | NaturEner |
| Ps Units Operational: | 140 turbines |
| Ps Units Manu Model: | Acciona AW77 1.5 MW |
| Wind Farm Type: | Onshore |
| Ps Electrical Capacity: | 210 MW |
| Ps Electrical Cap Fac: | 29.5% (average 2010-2019) |
| Ps Annual Generation: | 542 GW·h |
The Glacier Wind Farm spans southwest Glacier County and southeast Toole County in northern Montana. With a total generating capacity of 210 megawatts (MW), it became the largest wind farm in the state when the second construction phase came online at the end of 2009. A portion of the electricity is purchased by San Diego Gas and Electric.[1]
The facility is located off of U.S. Highway 2 south of the unincorporated community of Ethridge, between the cities of Cut Bank and Shelby, and spans about 25,000 acres. It was constructed in two phases by Mortenson Construction, starting with a groundbreaking celebration in July 2007.[2] The completed facility consists of 140 wind turbines and their foundations, electrical substations, maintenance buildings, access roads, underground collection lines, and overhead transmission lines.[3]
Phase I entered service in October 2008 and uses 71 Acciona 1.7 MW turbines.[4] [5] Phase II came online in October 2009 and uses an additional 69 Acciona 1.7 MW turbines.[6] The 189 MW Rim Rock Wind Farm was subsequently completed about 15 miles to the north in 2012. In addition to the hundreds of construction jobs and millions of dollars in cumulative land lease payments and tax revenues, about 10-15 permanent local jobs were also created to maintain the facilities over their lifetime.[7]
| Year | Glacier I (106.5 MW) [8] | Glacier II (103.5 MW) [9] | Total Annual MW·h | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 249,079 | 43,184* | 292,263 | |
| 2010 | 211,679 | 215,595 | 427,274 | |
| 2011 | 308,543 | 321,846 | 630,389 | |
| 2012 | 290,267 | 286,948 | 577,215 | |
| 2013 | 284,762 | 276,187 | 560,949 | |
| 2014 | 272,897 | 259,192 | 532,089 | |
| 2015 | 260,622 | 258,022 | 518,644 | |
| 2016 | 284,566 | 290,305 | 574,871 | |
| 2017 | 287,367 | 286,219 | 573,586 | |
| 2018 | 260,131 | 248,208 | 508,339 | |
| 2019 | 254,813 | 264,259 | 519,072 | |
| Average Annual Production (years 2010-2019) ---> | 542,243 | |||
| Average Capacity Factor (years 2010-2019) ---> | 29.5% | |||