Coal Creek

Rainbow Energy Center, LLCMcLean CountyMISO

Coal Creek Station is a two-unit conventional steam-coal plant in McLean County, North Dakota, near Underwood and Washburn. Unit 1 began operating in June 1979 and Unit 2 in September 1980, each with 604.8 MW nameplate capacity. The plant burns beneficiated North Dakota lignite supplied by the adjacent Falkirk Mining Company and transmits approximately 1,151 MW of power via the Nexus Line 410 kV HVDC system to Minnesota. After Great River Energy announced a planned 2022 closure, Rainbow Energy Center acquired the plant on May 1, 2022, preserving its operation as North Dakota's largest coal-fired generating station. The plant also serves approximately 205 MW of interruptible on-site load. A proposed carbon-capture and storage project is under development but not yet commissioned.