{"id":262679,"date":"2026-03-03T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/?p=262679"},"modified":"2026-03-02T16:45:17","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T23:45:17","slug":"montanans-want-more-solar-natural-gas-development-are-less-interested-in-new-coal-plants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2026\/03\/03\/montanans-want-more-solar-natural-gas-development-are-less-interested-in-new-coal-plants\/","title":{"rendered":"Montanans want more solar, natural gas development, are less interested in new coal plants"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This piece is part of <\/em>MTFP’s 2026 poll week<\/em><\/a>, where we’re exploring data on how Montana voters feel about their elected officials, environmental concerns, immigration enforcement and other issues.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Montanans are bullish on solar, natural gas and hydropower for electricity generation \u2014 but wary of adding additional coal power to the state\u2019s energy mix, according to a new Montana Free Press-Eagleton poll. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The results of the poll, conducted in late December and early January, come as the Trump<\/a> and Gianforte<\/a> administrations work to expand domestic energy production amid a surge in demand wrought by growth in artificial intelligence and other electricity-intensive industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Respondents were presented with a list of electricity sources and asked if they thought Montana should produce more, less or about the same amount of power from each source. The options included hydropower, coal and wind \u2014 all of which play a prominent role in Montana\u2019s current energy mix \u2014 as well solar<\/a> and natural gas<\/a>, which make up a smaller but growing contribution to the state\u2019s energy grid.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

According to an October analysis by Montana Free Press<\/a>, the state\u2019s single largest power producer is the 40-year-old coal-fired power plant in Colstrip, which is capable of generating up to 1,650 megawatts of electricity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The largest class of generation in the state, in contrast, is hydropower: Western Montana dams can generate more than 2,500 megawatts of power when they\u2019re operating at full capacity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A third behemoth in the energy landscape is wind. Since 2020, energy developers like Berkshire Hathaway Energy<\/a> and Pacific Northwest utilities such as Avista<\/a> and Puget Sound Energy<\/a> have invested in massive wind projects collectively capable of generating more than 1,000 megawatts of power \u2014 and additional wind farms are planned.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Utility-scale solar energy makes a tiny share of Montana\u2019s electricity mix, accounting for just 2% of the megawatt hours generated within the state\u2019s borders. But it garnered the most enthusiasm in the poll, with 56% of respondents supporting additional solar generation. A similar percentage, 55%, said the same about natural gas, which accounts for nearly 700 megawatts of capacity distributed between seven small- and medium-sized plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coal, which represents about 22% of the state\u2019s current generation capacity, was much less popular. Just 36% of respondents supported additional coal-fired power and around the same number, 39%, said they want less.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gov. Greg Gianforte and Montana\u2019s federal delegation, all Republicans, are aligned with President Donald Trump in backing coal, which has fueled Montana\u2019s largest power plant for more than 40 years. Jon Tester, the last Democrat to hold a statewide office, supported both renewable and fossil fuel energy sources during his tenure at the U.S. Senate, occasionally countering the Biden administration\u2019s efforts to tighten emission regulations<\/a> and restrict new federal coal leasing<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the current delegation\u2019s vigorous support for coal mining and the long-debated Colstrip plant<\/a>, demand for the carbon-intensive fuel has waned in recent years<\/a> as utility companies shift broadly to cheaper and cleaner power<\/a> sources such as natural gas and solar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bob Morris, Montana Tech\u2019s Lance Energy Chair, described Colstrip as a \u201cvital\u201d and reliable resource that has helped Montana be an energy exporter for many decades. Even so, he said, market and political conditions aren\u2019t spurring future investment in coal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith emissions and the political uncertainty, you won\u2019t find anyone willing to invest in coal,\u201d Morris said. \u201cMaybe today\u2019s administration is favorable, but in three years it may be a different administration.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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NorthWestern Energy, Montana\u2019s largest utility company, has significantly expanded the amount of coal and natural gas in its portfolio in recent years, building a 175-megawatt gas plant in Laurel and acquiring expanded stakes in the Colstrip plant<\/a> as climate legislation forces West Coast utilities to exit the facility.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Morris said there is a long list of solar developers eager to tie utility-scale projects into the electrical grid, but the weather-dependent nature of solar power can pose a challenge for utilities. The Trump administration\u2019s move to nix<\/a> tax incentives for renewable energy projects may have dampened investors\u2019 appetite for new solar projects, he added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shifting subsidies are also making things harder for wind developers looking to tap into the state\u2019s ready supply of wind. Despite D.C. policymakers\u2019 move to eliminate tax incentives for new wind projects<\/a>, utilities in Washington State and mega-investors like Berkshire Hathaway Energy have invested billions of dollars in Montana wind farms<\/a> in recent years and additional investments are planned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Morris said that future hydropower expansion is unlikely because most of the state\u2019s potential dam locations have already been developed. He said concerns about fish passage also merit consideration in hydropower discussions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery single energy conversion has a negative environmental impact,\u201d he said. \u201cWe need to look at which impacts we\u2019re willing to live with.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The MTFP-Eagleton poll surveyed 801 registered voters through telephone interviews and text-to-web questionnaires. Data was collected from Dec. 23, 2025 to Jan. 3, 2026. The poll, which was weighted to reflect the state\u2019s population of registered voters, has an overall margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This piece is part of the <\/em>Montana Insights project<\/em><\/a>, which is commissioning rounds of polling to help MTFP readers understand public sentiment on key Montana policy issues. Further findings from the Dec. 2025-Jan. 2026 poll <\/em>are available here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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75% of voters want Montana to have at least as much federal land as it does now<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t

Federal land transfer has been a party of the GOP party platform at both the state and national level, but a recent MTFP-Eagleton poll indicates that a majority of Republican voters oppose reducing the amount of land in federal ownership.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tby<\/span> Amanda Eggert<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Poll week: How Montanans feel about sales tax, immigration and state officials<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t

We polled Montana voters on an array of issues. Results will roll out the week of March 2.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tby<\/span> MTFP Staff<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Where does eastern Montana start? Montanans disagree<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t

Montana is in many ways a land of two halves: a western Montana of snow-capped mountains and national forests joined in political unity with an eastern Montana of wide-open plains and flatland agriculture. It’s a time-honored divide: peaks versus plains, Missoula versus Miles City, Flathead versus Fort Peck lakes. But where exactly is the dividing line?<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tby<\/span> Eric Dietrich<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t