Power plant operator reverses course, says it’s staying

BILLINGS – The operator of one of the largest coal-fired power plants in the Western U.S. says it intends to keep running the 2,100-megawatt plant after declaring last year that a new operator would be needed by mid-2018.

Spokesman Todd Martin said Wednesday the co-owners of the Colstrip Generating Station have decided Pennsylvania-based Talen Energy will keep running the southeastern Montana plant for the foreseeable future.

Talen executives asserted last year that Colstrip was no longer economically viable.

Martin did not give a reason for the reversal, which was first reported by the Billings Gazette.

Montana lawmakers this year approved a measure allowing Talen to borrow up to $10 million annually to keep Colstrip fully operational until 2022. David Ewer with the Montana Board of Investments says no loan has been sought.