Gordon Butte Pumped Storage Project

{{Short description|Planned energy facility in Montana, United States}}

File:Gordon Butte Montana.jpeg

The Gordon Butte Pumped Storage Project is a planned pumped hydroelectric storage facility that will be located in Martinsdale, Montana.

The facility will be owned and operated by Absaroka Energy, which submitted a license application for the project to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in 2015.{{cite web|url=http://billingsgazette.com/proposed-pumped-storage-project-aims-to-add-reliability-to-electrical/article_a0b4ac46-ab07-5244-933f-1b6cfd0df43a.html|title=Proposed pumped storage project aims to add reliability to electrical grid |publisher=Billings Gazette|date=September 1, 2016|access-date=December 23, 2016}} The agency approved the request in December 2016, following a September decision of no environmental impact, granting Absaroka a 50-year license to operate Gordon Butte.{{cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/license-issued-1b-montana-power-storage-project-44356609|title=License Issued for $1B Montana Power Storage Project|work=ABC News|date=December 22, 2016|access-date=December 23, 2016}}

Gordon Butte will be located on a {{convert|177|acre|km2}} site, and will have access to water from Cottonwood Creek, a tributary of the Musselshell River. The facility will operate as a closed-loop system, without actively drawing or discharging water into the watershed. It will have a 4,000 acre-foot capacity reservoir, located {{convert|1000|ft|m}} above the base, with a power generation capacity of about 400 MW.{{Cite web|title=Project Overview|url=https://www.gordonbuttepumpedstorage.com/project-overview|access-date=2021-05-11|website=Gordon Butte Energy Park|language=en-US}}

According to Absaroka, construction was planned to begin in 2018 or later, after design and engineering work is completed and financing is obtained. The construction cost is projected to be $986 million, and once in operation the annual operating cost will be $173 million to generate power with an estimated value of $220 million.

In 2019 Danish investment group Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners made a significant equity investment in the project{{cite web |last1=Driscol |first1=William |title=Enormous Montana pumped hydro project gets Danish investment |url=https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2019/07/10/massive-montana-pumped-hydro-project-gets-danish-investment/ |website=pv-magazine-usa.com |date=10 July 2019 |publisher=PV Magazine |access-date=8 August 2019}} which was thought to allow construction to begin in 2020.{{cite web |last1=Brown |first1=Matthew |title=Montana energy storage project lines up financial partner |url=https://phys.org/news/2019-07-montana-energy-storage-lines-financial.html |website=phys.org |date=12 July 2019 |access-date=6 September 2019}} As of 2020, construction was estimated to begin in 2025 and be completed by 2029.{{cite report|url=https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5db05bc88552dd5ab112f3ce/t/5f2c6d14d53c8f74bfd9b6c9/1596747032484/20200731-3009%2834166324%29+%282%29.pdf |title=ORDER GRANTING EXTENSION OF TIME TO COMMENCE AND COMPLETE CONSTRUCTION PURSUANT TO ARTICLE 301 |date=July 31, 2020 |publisher=Federal Energy Regulatory Commission |access-date=2022-08-29}}