Midwest

North Dakota

North Dakota’s Governor set a non-binding net-zero emissions goal by 2030, but emissions have increased 36% from 1990-2021, and the state remains one of the top coal- and oil-producing states in the country. While over half of in-state electricity generation comes from coal, almost 40% is sourced from renewables, with wind power more than doubling from 2016-2022. With a low population, geographically-spaced communities, and an energy-intensive industrial sector, North Dakota ranks third in the country for both per capita energy consumption and expenditures.

GHG Reduction Targets

All targets relative to 2005 levels

2030 :

Carbon neutral

Governor

Doug Burgum (Republican)

House Party

Republican Supermajority

Senate Party

Republican Supermajority

Key Offices & Links

2

Policies Enacted or In Progress

across 2 policy areas

See all

60

Policy Opportunities

across 7 policy areas

See all

Midwest

12 states

This map shows the occurrence of climate policies passed at the state-level. Higher numbers represent more climate policies enacted.

Compare with other states

Progress by Policy Area

Enacted
In-progress
Partially Enacted
Not Enacted

Glossary of Terms

Status	Policy	Policy Area	Policy Category	YR Enacted
Enacted	Clean Energy and Renewable Portfolio Standards Empty column 10% renewable energy by 2015 Establishing Policies HB 1506 (2007)	Electricity	Energy Plans and Targets	2007
Not Enacted	Electricity Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Targets Empty column Electricity greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets are set by a state to limit GHG emissions in the electricity sector. These targets aim to reduce emissions by different amounts over time, often expressed as percentage relative to a baseline year.	Electricity	Energy Plans and Targets
Not Enacted	Clean Energy Plans Empty column Clean energy plans are documents that outline the policies and strategies states can implement to meet clean energy targets. Draft plans are often published first, and after a period of public comments and revisions, a final plan is released.	Electricity	Energy Plans and Targets
Not Enacted	Distributed Generation/Solar Carve-out Empty column The State Policy Opportunity Tracker (SPOT) breaks clean energy policies down into “components”, which are binary questions to evaluate policy quality. Higher quality policies have more of their SPOT components fulfilled. Establishing Policies SPOT - Distributed Generation/Solar Carve-out in North Dakota Policy Components not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted 0/5	Electricity	Clean Energy Generation
Partially Enacted	Net Metering Empty column The State Policy Opportunity Tracker (SPOT) breaks clean energy policies down into “components”, which are binary questions to evaluate policy quality. Higher quality policies have more of their SPOT components fulfilled. Establishing Policies SPOT - Net Metering in North Dakota SPOT - Aggregate Net Metering in North Dakota Policy Components enacted enacted not-enacted not-enacted enacted not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted 3/11	Electricity	Clean Energy Generation
Partially Enacted	Shared Renewables Empty column The State Policy Opportunity Tracker (SPOT) breaks clean energy policies down into “components”, which are binary questions to evaluate policy quality. Higher quality policies have more of their SPOT components fulfilled. Establishing Policies SPOT - Shared Renewables in North Dakota Policy Components not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted not-enacted enacted 1/6	Electricity	Clean Energy Generation
Not Enacted	Community Choice Aggregation Empty column Community choice aggregation allows local governments to procure power on behalf of their residents, businesses, and municipal accounts from an alternative supplier while still receiving transmission and distribution service from their existing utility provider.	Electricity	Clean Energy Generation
Not Enacted	Energy Storage Targets Empty column Energy storage targets establish procurement targets for energy storage systems by a certain date, often with interim targets. Targets can vary from broad megawatt (MW) requirements to more specific mandates that focus on the adoption of certain storage technologies.	Electricity	Transmission, Distribution, and Energy Storage
Not Enacted	Interconnection Standards Empty column North Dakota received an F grade from Freeing the Grid. Establishing Policies Freeing the Grid North Dakota Grade (2023)	Electricity	Transmission, Distribution, and Energy Storage
Not Enacted	Coal Phaseouts Empty column Coal phaseouts establish a target year by which states must end coal-fired power generation.	Electricity	Coal Retirement
Not Enacted	Coal Plant Securitization Empty column Coal securitization is a financing tool that allows utility companies to refinance debt they issued to build coal plants and close the facilities early without taking a financial hit or passing costs on to ratepayers.	Electricity	Coal Retirement

North Dakota

Key Offices & Links

2

60

Midwest

Progress by Policy Area

Climate Governance and Equity

Cross-Sector

Electricity

Buildings and Efficiency

Transportation

Industry, Materials, and Waste Management

Natural and Working Lands

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Projections in North Dakota