Energy Trail Tour
Energy Trail Tours are a 3-day adventure allowing you to experience first-hand how your power providers convert energy from water, wind, and coal into electricity. View coal being mined and see how those mines are then returned to productive farm and native grass lands. Enjoy interactive walking tours through a hydroelectric and coal-fired energy generation facility and other stops along the way. Meet other cooperative member-owners while traveling together across the Dakotas on-board a motor-coach bound for the North Dakota's Energy Loop.
Big Bend Dam & Powerhouse
Big Bend Dam in Fort Thompson, South Dakota, is a two-mile-long Missouri River dam built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under the Pick-Sloan Program. Completed in 1966, its eight hydroelectric generators can produce 480 megawatts, supporting flood control, water management, recreation, and power delivery across the region, including western Iowa.
Great Plains Synfuels Plant
DAKOTA GASIFICATION COMPANY
Basin Electric’s Dakota Gasification Company operates the Great Plains Synfuels Plant near Beulah, North Dakota—the nation’s only commercial-scale coal gasification facility using Lurgi technology. Opened in 1984, it converts lignite into synthetic natural gas and other products, producing up to 170 million standard cubic feet of SNG daily for delivery through the Northern Border pipeline.
THE COTEAU PROPERTIES COMPANY
Freedom Mine
DAKOTA COAL COMPANY
Dakota Coal Company manages lignite rights, financing, and marketing for North Dakota’s Freedom Mine, the nation’s largest lignite mine by deliveries at about 16 million tons annually. Operated by The Coteau Properties Company, the mine supplies nearby Basin Electric power stations and the Great Plains Synfuels Plant while reclaiming roughly 600 acres of land each year.
Antelope Valley Station
Antelope Valley Station near Beulah, North Dakota, is a vital 900-megawatt, dispatchable generation facility serving Basin Electric member cooperatives. Located beside the Freedom Mine, it uses a reliable local lignite supply while advanced dry scrubbers and fabric filters reduce sulfur dioxide and particulate emissions. Its efficient zero-discharge design supports dependable power with responsible water management.
