PRAIRIE WINDS ND1
OperatingWind power plant
- Capacity
- 116 MW
- Primary fuel
- Wind
- County
- Ward County
- Operator
- BASIN ELECTRIC POWER COOPERATIVE
- Status
- Operating
- Commissioned
- 2009
- EIA plant ID
- 56607
- Generators
- 1
- Technology
- Onshore Wind Turbine
- Net generation (2024)
- 311 GWh
- Capacity factor (2024, EIA nameplate)
- 31%
- Data vintage
- EIA-860 2024 final; EIA-923 2022-2024 final
- Coordinates
- 48.1333, -101.3833
PRAIRIE WINDS ND1, a 116 MW Wind power plant in Ward County, North Dakota. Operated by BASIN ELECTRIC POWER COOPERATIVE, commissioned 2009.
How PRAIRIE WINDS ND1 compares
With 116 MW of capacity, PRAIRIE WINDS ND1 ranks 12th among the 40 operating power plants Bywatts maps in North Dakota and 6th of the 21 operating Wind plants in the state. It accounts for about 6.7% of North Dakota's operating Wind capacity and 1.8% of all operating capacity in the state. Nationally it is the 195th-largest of the 708 operating Wind plants in the database. Commissioned in 2009, it is newer than 57% of the 40 operating North Dakota plants with a recorded commissioning year. Its operator, BASIN ELECTRIC POWER COOPERATIVE, runs 6 operating plants in North Dakota totaling 1,648 MW. It shares Ward County with one other operating plant, MINOT WIND PROJECT.
EIA-860 lists 1 generator at the site with 116 MW of nameplate capacity, all onshore wind turbine technology. Net generation was 311 GWh in 2024 (a 31% capacity factor), down 4% from 2022.
Grid neighborhood
The closest transmission line found within 10 miles is a 115 kV line, about 0.4 miles away. Another 2 operating power plants totaling 19 MW sit within 25 miles; the largest is VELVA WINDFARM LLC (12 MW, Wind).
Computed by Bywatts from HIFLD power plant and transmission line records and EIA-860/923 survey data; distances are straight-line. Sources and methodology
Weather peril exposure
PRAIRIE WINDS ND1 is a 116 MW wind power plant in Ward County, ND, operated by BASIN ELECTRIC POWER COOPERATIVE, commissioned in 2009. Ward County carries high modeled catastrophe exposure in the FEMA National Risk Index, scoring 3.8 of 5 at the 71st national percentile. Winter weather is the leading peril, rated Very High by FEMA at the 100th percentile.
The Bywatts loss layer is calibrated to solar PV hardware, so it is not applied to a wind plant. The ratings below are the FEMA National Risk Index county hazard ratings for this location.
Ward County hazard ratings
| Peril | FEMA rating | National percentile | Peril score | Events per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter weather | Very High | 100th | 5.0 of 5 | 20.2 |
| Ice storm | Relatively High | 82nd | 4.3 of 5 | 0.45 |
| Hail | Relatively Moderate | 76th | 4.0 of 5 | 1.9 |
| Heat wave | Very Low | 75th | 4.0 of 5 | 1.00 |
| Wildfire | Relatively Low | 70th | 3.8 of 5 | <0.01 |
| Strong wind | Relatively Moderate | 62nd | 3.5 of 5 | 0.91 |
| Tornado | Relatively Moderate | 45th | 2.8 of 5 | 0.60 |
| Lightning | Very Low | 30th | 2.2 of 5 | 27.3 |
| Riverine flooding | Relatively Low | 3rd | 1.1 of 5 | 0.82 |
| Earthquake | Very Low | 3rd | 1.1 of 5 | <0.01 |
Perils not assessed in Ward County
These perils carry no usable National Risk Index figure for this county, so they are excluded from the scoring rather than scored zero. A zero would claim the peril was assessed and found benign.
| Peril | Why it is not scored |
|---|---|
| Hurricane | FEMA rating is "Not Applicable" for this county |
| Coastal flooding | FEMA rating is "Not Applicable" for this county |
Model hail, wind and flood exposure for Ward County in the weather risk calculator
Ratings are the FEMA National Risk Index county hazard ratings; the peril score is a Bywatts transform of the FEMA national percentile. Full data sources and the solar vulnerability methodology are in the weather risk calculator.
Modeled estimate for screening and negotiation. Built from FEMA National Risk Index county hazard data and a solar vulnerability layer documented above. Not a quote, a binder, or actuarial advice, and not a substitute for a carrier's own model. Hazard data: FEMA National Risk Index December 2025, synced 2026-07-24. Resolution is county level, not site level.