Generation Resources
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Generation Resources
Moorhead Public Service buys
54 percent of its power as hydroelectricity
generated by the Western Area Power
Administration. One of the dams operated
by WAPA is Garrison, the fifth largest earthen dam in the United States.
Garrison backs up the third largest reservoir in the U.S. - Lake Sakakawea. |
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Another 44 percent of Moorhead's power is purchased from Missouri River Energy
Services. MRES is a joint-action agency consisting of a group of
municipally-owned electric utilities. MRES receives 272 MW of power from the
Laramie River Station, one of the cleanest, most efficient coal-fired power plants in
the nation. In 2004, Missouri River Energy Services built the new 100 MW Exira
Plant, which is fueled either by natural gas or fuel oil. |
The remaining one percent of Moorhead's power needs is met from wind
generation. MPS owns and operates two 750-kilowatt wind turbines. The turbines
are located in northeast Moorhead, near the
junction of 28th Street and 15th Avenue North. MPS began producing
electricity from wind on May 14, 1999, and produced its millionth kilowatt-hour of
electricity on February 12, 2000. Wind generated electricity is available to
those customers who sign up for the Capture The Wind program.
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MPS also owns a 10-megawatt gas turbine located at the Moorhead Power Plant. This
turbine is leased to Missouri River Energy Services and provides reserve and
emergency power production for the joint-action agency and the city of
Moorhead. |
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