The commission has approved the transaction, which includes sale of 11 hydroelectric power plants and Hebgen Lake reservoir by PPL Montana to NorthWestern Energy.
Under the agreement, PPL will sell its hydroelectric facilities which include Thompson Falls Dam on the Clark Fork River; Kerr Dam on the Flathead River; Madison Dam on the Madison River; Mystic Lake Dam on West Rosebud Creek; and Hauser, Holter, Black Eagle, Rainbow, Cochrane, Ryan and Morony dams along the Missouri River.
The generating facilities have a combined capacity of more than 630MW.
The approval follows prior permits from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), as well as the necessary clearance from the antitrust enforcement agencies.
NorthWestern must file with FERC, prior to closing transaction, and obtain approval of certain financing transactions.
PPL anticipates the sale’s total net cash proceeds to be approximately $880m.
The agreement excludes PPL Montana’s interest in the Colstrip coal-fired facility and its J.E. Corette coal-fired facility located near Billings.
PPL Montana also plans to decommission the 153MW Corette plant in April 2015.
Additionally, the transaction excludes the Butte-based marketing and trading operations of PPL Montana’s affiliate, PPL EnergyPlus.
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