This is a list of electricity-generating power stations in the U.S. state of North Dakota, sorted by type and name. In 2024, North Dakota had a total summer capacity of 9.7 GW through all of its power plants, and a net generation of 42,557 GWh. In 2025, the electrical energy generation mix was 53.1% coal, 36.2% wind, 5.3% natural gas, and 5.2% hydroelectric. Petroleum liquids and other gases generated most of the remaining 0.2%.
North Dakota contains the world's largest known deposit of lignite coal, and hosted 4% of U.S. coal extraction in year 2019. It ranked second behind the state of Texas in U.S. crude oil extraction. Natural gas extraction has been growing as well, and exceeded 1 trillion cubic feet for the first time.
North Dakota oil extraction included the flaring of over 200 billion cubic feet of associated petroleum gas in year 2019. Operations were widely distributed throughout the Bakken Formation which underlays the northwest region of the state. This record-high volume of wasted natural gas could have generated over 30,000 GWh of electrical energy, an amount equal to three-quarters of the state's total generation.
Nuclear power stations North Dakota had no utility-scale plants that used fissile material as a fuel in 2019.
Fossil-fuel power stations Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration serves as a general reference.
Coal and lignite A useful mapSierra Club - Beyond Coal of active and retiring coal generation plants is provided by the Sierra Club. Name Location Coordinates Capacity(MW) Refs Yearopened Notes American Crystal Sugar - Drayton Pembina County 6.0 1965 American Crystal Sugar - Hillsboro Traill County 13.3 1990 Antelope Valley Station Mercer County 900 1984/1986 Coal Creek Station McLean County 1150 1979/1980 Coyote Station Mercer County 430 1981 Leland Olds Station Mercer County 650 1966/1975 Milton R. Young Station Oliver County 680 1970/1977
Natural gas and petroleum Name Location Coordinates Capacity(MW) Fueltype Generationtype Number ofunits Refs Yearopened Notes Coal Creek Plant McLean County 6.0 Petroleum Reciprocating engine (x2) 2 2016 Grafton Plant Walsh County 4.0 Petroleum Reciprocating engine (x4) 4 1937/1949/1956 Heskett Station Morton County 178 Gas Simple cycle (x2) 2 2014/2024 Not to be confused with Heskett 1 & 2 coal-fired units (retired 2022, demolished in 2023) Hillsboro Plant Traill County 4.0 Petroleum Reciprocating engine (x2) 2 2002 Jamestown GT Stutsman County 41.7 Petroleum Simple cycle (x2) 2 1976/1978 Lonesome Creek Station McKenzie County 200 Gas Simple cycle (x5) 5 2013/2015/2017 Pioneer Generating Station Williams County 337 Gas,petroleum Simple cycle (x3)reciprocating engine (x12) 15 2014/2017 Spiritwood Station Stutsman County 100 Gas Steam turbine 1 2014 Originally coal-fired.Convert to gas in 2017.
Renewable power stations Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration serves as a general reference.
Hydroelectric Name Location Coordinates Capacity(MW) Refs Yearopened Notes Garrison Hydro Power Plant Mercer County 510 1956/1960 USACE owned and managed
Wind
Also see wind industry of North Dakota map. Name Location Coordinates Capacity(MW) Turbinespec Numberof units Refs Yearopened Note Ashtabula Wind Farm (I-III) Barnes CountyGriggs CountySteele County 378 GE 1.5-91,GE 1.5-91 250 2008/2009/2010 Aurora Wind Farm Williams CountyMountrail County 299 Nordex N149/4.8 71 2021 Baldwin Wind Farm (I-II)(aka Wilton Wind Farm) Burleigh County 99 GE 1.5-77,GE 1.5-77,GE 1.6-91 66 2005/2006/2010 Bison Wind Energy Center (I-IV) Morton County 497 Siemens SWT-2.3-101,Siemens SWT-3.0-101,Siemens SWT-3.2-113 165 2010/2012/2015 Border Winds Wind Farm Rolette County 150 Vestas V100-2.0 75 2016 Brady Wind Farm (I-II) Stark County 299 GE 1.715-103,GE 2.0-116 159 2016 Cedar Hills Wind Farm Bowman County 19.5 GE 1.5-77 13 2010 Courtenay Wind Farm Stutsman County 200 Vestas V100-2.0 100 2016 Emmons-Logan Wind Farm Emmons CountyLogan County 216.4 GE 1.72-103,GE 2.72-116 123 2019 Foxtrail Wind Dickey County 150 Vestas V110-2.0 75 2019 Glen Ullin Energy Center Morton CountyMercer County 107 GE 2.5-116 43 2019 Langdon Wind Energy Center Cavalier County 200 GE 1.5-77,GE 1.62-87,GE 1.62-91 133 2007/2008 Lindahl Wind Farm Williams County 150 Vestas V100-2.0 75 2017 Luverne Wind Farm(adjacent to Ashtabula) Steele County 49.5 GE 1.5-82.5 33 2009 Merricourt Wind Project Dickey County 150 Vestas V110-2.0 75 2020 New Frontier Wind McHenry County 99 Vestas V126-3.45 29 2018 North Dakota Wind (I-II) LaMoure County 61.5 GE 1.5-70.5 41 2003 Northern Divide (Burke) Wind Project Divide County,Burke County 193 GE 1.7-103,GE 2.72-116 74 2020 Oliver Wind Energy Center (I-III) Oliver County 198 Siemens SWT-2.3-108,GE 1.6-91,GE 1.79-100, GE 2.0-116 102 2006/2007/2017 Prairie Winds Wind Farm (I-II) Ward County 122.6 GE 1.5-77,GE 1.5-82.5,Nordex N60 82 2002/2009 Rugby Wind Farm Pierce County 149.1 Suzlon S88 71 2009 Sunflower Wind Farm Morton County 104 Vestas V100-2.0 52 2016 Tatanka Wind Farm Dickey CountyMcIntosh County 91.5* Acciona AW82/1500 65 2008 * portion in North Dakota Thunder Spirit Wind Farm (I-II) Adams County 155.5 Nordex N100, Nordex N117/3000 59 Nordex to supply 43, 2.5 MW turbines for Thunder Spirit project in North Dakota 2015/2018 Velva Wind Farm McHenry County 11.9 Vestas V47-0.66 18 2005
Solar
There are currently no operating utility-scale solar farms in North Dakota. National Grid Renewables, formerly known as Geronimo Energy, has been developing several potential projects within the state, including the 200 MW Harmony Solar Project in Cass County and the 128 MW Wild Spring Solar Project in Pennington County.
References