District 14 North Dakota House candidates Albert Krueger, R-Harvey, Dennis Fred, R-Rugby, District 14 Senate candidate Glen Baltrusch, R-Harvey, and LEC President Jason Bohrer toured Antelope Valley Station and the Freedom Mine on August 15.

District 14 Senate candidate Glen Baltrusch, R-Harvey, and District 14 House candidates Dennis Fred, R-Rugby, and Albert Krueger, R-Harvey, got a firsthand look at the lignite industry during the Lignite Energy Council’s biennial Legislative Tour of Coal Country on August 15, 2016.

Stops included the surface mining and reclamation areas at The North American Coal Corporation’s Freedom Mine near Beulah; along with the energy conversion and emissions control areas at Basin Electric Power Cooperative’s Antelope Valley Station, which is adjacent to the mine.

“In addition to seeing the extraordinary reclamation efforts at the Freedom Mine, the tour participants learned about energy conversion and environmental control systems at the Antelope Valley Station,” explained Jason Bohrer, president and chief executive officer of the Lignite Energy Council. He continued by emphasizing how the state’s power plants are more efficient while at the same time reducing emissions and producing affordable and reliable power for more than 2 million customers in the four-state area.

Tour participants also learned about the industry’s impact on the economy of North Dakota, including the direct and indirect employment of 15,000 people, the annual generation of $3.3 billion in business volume, and the annual generation of $97.9 million in tax revenue.