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1215.6 MW Conventional Steam Coal (1210 MW) + Petroleum Liquids (6 MW) operating in McLean, ND — Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc..
1,215.6 MW
Nameplate Capacity
4
Generators
units
Hybrid (2)
Technology
Conventional Steam Coal + Petroleum Liquids
1979
Operating Since
Coordinates
47.3777, -101.1571
County
McLean, ND
Nearby Plants
| Field | EIA | GEM | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | Rainbow Energy Center | Rainbow Energy Center | — |
| Owner(s) | Rainbow Energy Center | United Energy | — |
| Status | Operating | — | — |
Coal Creek Station is the largest power plant in the U.S. state of North Dakota. Located near the Missouri River between Underwood, North Dakota, and Washburn, North Dakota, it burns lignite. Its two generators are each rated at 605 megawatts, with a peak total production of nearly 1.2 gigawatts. Great River Energy had announced its intention to close the plant in 2022 if a new owner could not be found. On June 30, 2021, Great River Energy announced that they had reached an agreement to sell the plant to Rainbow Energy Center, LLC, who plans to continue to operate the plant. On May 2, 2022 the sale of Coal Creek Station and the high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system was completed.
Read more on WikipediaCoal Creek is a 1215.6 MW hybrid power plant located in McLean County, North Dakota. The plant, which began operating in 1979, is owned by United Energy and operated by Rainbow Energy Center. It utilizes both conventional steam coal and petroleum liquids (DFO) as fuel sources across its four generators. Coal Creek is the largest power plant in North Dakota and ranks as the 8th largest coal-fired plant nationally out of 60 such plants.
The plant operates within the Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator (MISO) balancing authority and the MRO NERC region. The latest available annual generation data indicates an output of 8,238,149 MWh, resulting in a capacity factor of 77.4%.
Generated from EIA, GEM, and public data sources
ISO/RTO
MISO
Market
ISO/RTO Member
NERC Region
MRO — Midwest Reliability Organization
Balancing Authority
Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.. (MISO)
Grid Voltage
410.0 kV
Regulatory Status
RE — Regulated
Entity Type
Investor-Owned Utility
Sector
Electric Utility
761.8K MWh
Latest Month
8.2M MWh
Annual Generation
77.4%
Capacity Factor
CO₂ Intensity
2023 lb/MWh
NOx
1 lb/MWh
SO₂
1 lb/MWh
CH₄
0.227 lb/MWh
N₂O
0.033 lb/MWh
Capacity Factor
67.3%
Annual Net Gen
7167 GWh
CO₂eq
2038 lb/MWh
Subregion
MRO West
Point of Interconnection
Nearest Substation
Underwood Substation · 400 kV
Substation Distance
< 10 km
Coord Source
OSM spatial
Market Position
ISO/RTO Market
MISO
LMP Node
GRE,REC.CC1_DC
Pricing Hub
MINN.HUB
Location Type
Generation Node
Node Source
EIA-860 direct report
Last updated 2026-03-26
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