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Clinton Community Microgrid

This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, Award Number DE-CD0000076.
This is a stock image used for demonstration purposes and does not reflect the final project results.

Consortium Project Introduction

Through the Energy Improvements in Rural or Remote Areas (ERA) program, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) is administering $366 million to support projects that will enhance clean energy systems in rural and remote communities. This investment will improve energy resilience, reliability, and affordability in areas with populations under 10,000, including 17 projects spanning 20 states and 30 tribal nations. Among these, the Microgrids for Community Affordability, Resilience, and Energy Decarbonization (CARED) project was awarded more than $9 million to implement Phase 1 of a clean energy initiative in seven rural communities in Arizona, California, Minnesota, Montana, North Carolina and Tennessee.

MEC is a member of a National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) consortium selected to receive federal funding through the CARED project.

Project Description

One of the primary challenges cooperatives face when serving rural and remote communities is managing long, radial distribution feeders and isolated substations that cannot be back-fed from alternative power sources. In the mountain west, many feeders extend into valleys geographically separated from areas with power infrastructure, making it impractical or cost-prohibitive to build loop feeds for switching loads during outages. These remote feeders and substations typically serve fewer members, but often carry loads that could benefit from a backup power source.

Missoula Electric Cooperative’s Clinton Community Microgrid project will install a 1 MW solar array and 2 MWh of battery storage in Clinton, Montana. This solar-plus-storage microgrid will enhance the resilience of the co-op’s Clinton distribution feeders, providing a reliable backup power solution.

Benefits

The project will test system capabilities for peak load shaving and limited backup power for members and business owners in the Clinton area. This microgrid pilot will serve as a resource to not only MEC, but fellow cooperatives, as future microgrid investments are considered.

As natural disasters become more severe, frequent and unpredictable, microgrids offer reliable, cost-effective, locally sourced power.

Communities and Members Impacted

The benefits of this project will extend beyond the Clinton community, positively impacting the peak shaving capabilities of the Cooperative, which could lower MEC member rates.

Furthermore, MEC members in the Clinton community will provide limited backup power to reduce long-duration power outages.

Timeline

The Clinton Community Microgrid project’s development and construction will use a phased approach from 2025 – 2028.

  • Engineering Design: 2025
  • Permitting & Interconnection: Scheduled for late 2025
  • Procurement: Scheduled for mid-2026
  • Construction: Project construction in 2027
  • Operation: Project implementation in 2028

Project Overview

Download the Project Overview here.

Contact Information

General Project Inquiries:

Keelie Montalban, Assistant General Manager & Chief Risk Officer

KeelieM@meccoop.com

406.541.6359

Community Benefit Plan Inquiries:

Kelsey Lodge, Manager of Communications & PR

KelseyL@meccoop.com

406.541.6352