Otter Tail announces plans for new power station in South Dakota

Prairie Business Staff Report

Otter Tail Power Co. will seek regulatory approval for a natural gas-fired power station near Astoria, South Dakota. The simple-combustion system will produce 250 megawatts of energy, using natural gas from the Northern Border Pipeline.

“Astoria Station is part of our company’s plan to reliably, economically, and environmentally responsibly meet our customers’ energy needs, replace expiring capacity purchase agreements, and prepare for the 2021 retirement of the 1950s-era, 140-megawatt, coalfired Hoot Lake Plant in Fergus Falls, Minnesota,” Otter Tail President Tim Rogelstad says in a statement. “We ensure that the mix of resources we use to generate electricity includes enough capacity to reliably serve customers during periods of high demand for power and enough affordable energy to serve customers always.”

If approved, Astoria Station would be located at the intersection of the Northern Border Pipeline and an electric transmission line, minimizing the project’s effects on landowners and avoiding some significant costs, according to Otter Tail. The company will invest $165 million in the project, which includes 70 construction jobs during the peak of the 13-month construction period. The company expects Astoria Station to be online in 2021 with three to five full-time employees.

Rogelstad says Astoria Station will complement the company’s wind generation by providing a reliable backstop when the wind isn’t blowing and will have flexible operating options and low CO2 emissions.

In November 2016, Otter Tail announced plans for a 150-MW wind farm near the small town of Merricourt, North Dakota, in McIntosh and Dickey Counties. Expected to be complete in 2019, the company estimates the project to cost more than $250 million, generate enough energy to power more than 65,000 homes, and add 10 permanent jobs.

Before Astoria Station or Merricourt project construction can begin, generator interconnection agreements must be negotiated with the Midcontinent Independent System Operator and numerous regulatory approvals must be obtained, according to Otter Tail. PB