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Laramie River Station

Laramie River facts

Located near Wheatland, WY, this baseload plant is fueled by coal.

Operating capacity: 1,710 megawatts
Basin Electric owns 722 megawatts capacity
Units: 3
Boiler height: 225 feet
Stack height: 605 feet
Construction costs: $1.6 billion
Environmental controls investment: $330 million
Fuel consumption: 375 tons of pulverized coal per hour (per unit)
Fuel supply: Sub-bituminous coal supplied by Western Fuels Association
Grayrocks reservoir capacity: 104,000 acre-feet
Horsepower: 600,000 per unit

Laramie River Station near Wheatland, WY

The Laramie River Station is located near Wheatland, WY.

The Laramie River Station, located east of Wheatland, WY, is one of the largest consumer-operated, regional, joint power supply ventures in the United States (video). Laramie River Station has three coal-based units: Unit 1: 570 net megawatts; began operating in 1980; Unit 2: 570 net megawatts; began operating in 1981; Unit 3: 570 net megawatts; began operating in 1982.

Laramie River is unique because it delivers electricity to two separate electrical grids. Unit 1 is connected to the Eastern Interconnection, while Unit 2 and Unit 3 are connected to the Western Interconnection. These grids, which divide the United States into two sections, were developed independently and must be served separately.

The electricity produced at Laramie River is sent to substations in Wyoming, Nebraska and Colorado, where it is then delivered to Missouri Basin Power Project (MBPP) participants (video).

Missouri Basin Power Project

A group of six electric utilities, the Missouri Basin Power Project participants, own the plant and adjacent facilities.

Basin Electric is a 42.27 percent owner of the Project and is also its Operating Agent.

The other five MBPP participants are:

Heartland Consumers Power District, Madison, SD
Lincoln Electric System, Lincoln, NE
Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Westminster, CO
Western Minnesota Municipal Power Agency, Ortonville, MN
Wyoming Municipal Power Agency, Lusk, WY

Grayrocks Dam and Reservoir

Located 11 miles east of Laramie River Station, the Grayrocks Reservoir is the principal water source for the plant. Along with other groundwater sources, it provides up to 23,250 acre-feet of water annually for steam production and cooling at the plant. The reservoir, which is about eight miles long, includes recreational facilities and a visitor overlook. Several species of game fish are stocked in the reservoir.

2010: For the first time in nine years, the Grayrocks Reservoir is full. The man-made lake that supplies water to the Laramie River Station near Wheatland, WY, reached 100-percent capacity (below) on May 28. The last time the reservoir was full was in June 2001.

The man-made lake that supplies water to the Laramie River Station near Wheatland, WY, reached 100-percent capacity (left) on May 28.

The last time the reservoir was full was in June 2001. Grayrocks reached its low point in January 2008, when it was only 10 percent full, containing 10,400 acre-feet of water. The reservoir's capacity is 104,000 acre-feet. An acre-foot of water is the amount of water it takes to cover one acre of land one foot deep. One acre-foot of water is equivalent to 325,828 gallons.

Grayrocks has been slowly recovering since 2008, but precipitation during 2010 has boosted the reservoir's levels quickly. Inflows from tributaries jumped from a few hundred cubic feet per second early in the year to a peak of about 2,300 cubic feet per second on May 21. The Reservoir now stands at 101.7% (105,900 acre/ft.).

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