Basin Electric breaks ground on largest single-site electric generation project built in North Dakota in 40 years

Nearly 100 cooperative members, employees, community members, and dignitaries gathered Sept. 11 to break ground on Basin Electric’s largest single-site electric generation project to be built in North Dakota in 40 years.

As a commitment to the delivery of reliable and affordable electricity, Basin Electric is building about 580 megawatts (MW) of natural gas generation near the existing Pioneer Generation Station northwest of Williston, N.D. The project is referred to as Pioneer Generation Station Phase IV.

The natural gas-fueled, dispatchable generation facility is an important component to Basin Electric’s all-of-the-above energy portfolio, which uses natural gas, coal, wind, recovered energy, fuel oil, market purchases, and soon solar, to serve its growing membership.

Todd Brickhouse, Basin Electric interim chief executive officer and general manager, said the five cooperatives who serve the Bakken region have invested more than $1.1 billion over the past decade to ensure reliable, affordable power in this region. “Similarly, Basin Electric has invested just over $1.1 billion in the region over the last 15 years. If you look at what is being built here at Pioneer Generation Station today and include the major transmission infrastructure we are currently planning to build, Basin Electric will invest another $1.3 billion in the Bakken region in the next few years,” Brickhouse said. “Projects of this scale couldn’t be accomplished without the cooperation of citizens who surround these localities. We thank the landowners who endure construction in this region every day as we complete these vitally important projects.”

Load forecasts show member cooperatives in the Bakken region will require more electricity by 2025. According to the 2023 Basin Electric Member Load Forecast, 92% of Basin Electric’s distribution cooperative members are growing. In western North Dakota and eastern Montana, that growth is due to economic development related to oil and gas, and the ancillary services that go along with this progress.

Jeremy Mahowald, Upper Missouri Power Cooperative general manager, said Upper Missouri Power, a Basin Electric Class A member, receives 97% of its power from Basin Electric. “The landscape surrounding this area is some of the sparsest country in the United States, population-wise. Within our footprint is mostly agriculture, but we also serve the Bakken which is very energy-intensive. Our electricity needs are day and night, every day of the year, and our power needs continue to grow,” Mahowald said. “It’s critical that we have facilities like Pioneer Generation Station Phase IV to support our region. We applaud the wind development and all-of-the-above energy strategy, but the grid stability we get with a facility like Pioneer really can’t be beat.”

“[Pioneer Generation Station Phase IV] is not only a significant investment into our power grid, it adds significant strength to our state’s economic appeal,” said North Dakota Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller. “When we say North Dakota feeds and fuels the world, it’s because of investments like this, investments that provide reliable, affordable electricity that allow our state to be an energy and agricultural powerhouse.”

Construction began on the $800 million facility addition in March. Burns & McDonnell is the engineering, procurement, and construction lead on the project. More than 150 contract workers are on site, and there will be 250 workers on site during the peak of construction. The project includes two simple-cycle combustion turbines, each capable of producing up to 235 MW, a series of reciprocating engines totaling about 110 MW, and 15 miles of 345-kilovolt transmission, all to be in service by 2026.

Gavin McCollam, Basin Electric senior vice president and chief operating officer, said Basin Electric intends to keep its promise of being a good neighbor as this generation facility grows. “The people who live and work in this area are our members, and it’s our obligation to be good neighbors,” McCollam said. “When this project is complete, the entire Pioneer Generation Station site, with more than 800-MW of dispatchable generation, will be the largest natural gas-based plant in a radius that is bounded by Milwaukee [Wis.] to the east, Denver [Colo.] to the south, Salt Lake City [Utah] to the southwest, and the Pacific Ocean to the west; a proud addition to the Basin Electric fleet, and a crown jewel of natural gas-based generation.”

“Eighteen months ago, we started talking about this project, and as you can see behind me, we have made a lot of progress since then. … We’re proud to serve Basin Electric, and we’ll stop at nothing to get this project done on time,” Travis Fucich, Burns & McDonnell project executive and engineering director, said. “Burns & McDonnell has a value that we want to leave the community better than we found it. We work with Basin Electric and all of our customers to make sure that happens through community outreach.”

When operational, the facility will have employees on-site 24-hours a day.