World Power Plants

Rainbow (MT) is a 59 MW hydroelectric power plant in the United States, operated by NorthWestern Energy since 2013. Ranked #289 of 1469 hydro plants in the United States. Its 59 MW accounts for 0.05% of the United States' total hydro capacity of 117,947 MW. The largest hydro plant in the United States is the Grand Coulee Dam at 6,809 MW, making Rainbow (MT) 115 times smaller. Nearby plants within 50 km include Morony (63 MW, Hydro), Cochrane (60.4 MW, Hydro), and Ryan (52.8 MW, Hydro). The facility is located in Montana, approximately 150 km south of Great Falls.

Capacity
59 MW
Commissioning Year
2013

13 years old

Owner
NorthWestern Energy
Location
47.5344°, -111.2045°

United States of America, North America

Context & rankings
  • 2,776. largest of 10,098 plants in United States of America
  • #12,521 worldwide by installed capacity
  • #3,010 of 8,493 Hydroelectric plants worldwide
Age & fleet comparison

13 years in operation

Hydroelectric fleet average: 42.1 years

Operator portfolio

NorthWestern Energy operates 14 plants totalling 489 MW

Regional density

13 plants within 100 km, 364 MW combined

Nearest plant: Cochrane (0.8 km)

Location

Coordinates:: 47.534400, -111.204500
Open in Google Maps
Carbon Footprint

Zero Direct Emissions

Rainbow (MT) is a hydro power plant producing approximately 207 GWh of clean electricity per year with zero direct CO₂ emissions during operation.

Lifecycle emissions: ~24 g CO₂/kWh (manufacturing, transport, decommissioning)

Technical Details

Primary Fuel Type
Hydro
Energy Source
Renewable
Country
United States of America
Continent
North America
Data Source
Global Power Plant Database

United States of AmericaEnergy Profile

10,098
Total Plants
1420.7 GW
Total Capacity
GasCoalNuclearWind
Top Fuels

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