Montana

Proposed Montana wind farm could make world news

Posted: Oct 31, 2012 8:09 AM by Katy Harris - KAJ News
Updated: Oct 31, 2012 8:10 AM

Proposed Anaconda wind farm could make world news

ANACONDA - The first renewable energy project on a reclaimed mining site could be coming to Anaconda.

"This will attract a great deal of national attention and be of national importance," says Exergy Integrated Systems Product Developer Gordon Brittan.

The world's largest Superfund site could make headlines if a wind farm is built in the heart of it.

Anaconda Deer Lodge County, Exergy Integrated Systems and NorthWestern Energy are now in the proposal stage of the project.

A proposed 45 megawatt wind farm could power 6,000 homes in the area, and eight wind turbines could be built on top of C-Hill in Anaconda. They would be over 400 feet tall and over look the worlds biggest Superfund site.

"One hundred years of mining and smelting here-to create renewable energy on this site is almost a 180 from what it was used for in the past and that's pretty exciting I think for the area," Anaconda Deer Lodge County Superfund Coordinator Carl Nyman.

The nice thing about this project is that there's already a power plant and two sub-stations in place just down the hill, which puts the project one step ahead of the game.

A transmission line would connect the wind turbines to the power plant and sub-stations.

Exergy Integrated Systems will find out if they made the NorthWestern Energy short list to build the project at the end of November, and negotiations may start in January.