NorthWestern Energy plans to participate in the Energy Imbalance Market operated by the California Independent System Operator Corporation by April 2021, according to a Nov. 8 press release. The market is an automated system that secures the lowest-cost energy to serve real-time customer demand over a broad region spanning across multiple western states. The company said that participation in the market would result in lower costs for customers, more efficient use of renewables, and greater grid reliability. NorthWestern underscored the need to access other generation resources that are available on demand as Montana is experiencing a growth in wind generation. The market generated about $100 million in savings in the third quarter of this year, with total benefits reaching $502 million since its launch in November 2014. Since its launch, the market has delivered 734,437 megawatt-hours of renewable energy that otherwise would have been curtailed.