77th largest plant in Minnesota · 3951st nationally
Fairmont (Mn) is a natural gas power plant in Minnesota with a nameplate capacity of 39.0 MW. It generates roughly 13.0k MWh per year — enough to power about 1,233 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 4% reflects intermittent or peaking operation. At 1552 lb CO₂/MWh, its emission rate sits above the national grid average of roughly 800 lb/MWh.
| Plant Name | Fairmont (Mn) |
|---|---|
| Operator | Southern Minnesota Mun P Agny |
| City | Fairmont |
| County | Martin County |
| State | Minnesota |
| ZIP | 56031 |
| Coordinates | 43.65790, -94.46470 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 12.5 MW | Retired | 1959 |
| 10 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 6.5 MW | Operating | 2014 |
| 11 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 6.5 MW | Operating | 2014 |
| 12 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 6.5 MW | Operating | 2014 |
| 6 | Petroleum Liquids | Distillate Oil | 6.5 MW | Operating | 1975 |
| 7 | Petroleum Liquids | Distillate Oil | 6.5 MW | Operating | 1975 |
| 9 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 6.5 MW | Operating | 2014 |
| 3 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 5.0 MW | Retired | 1945 |
| 4 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 5.0 MW | Retired | 1949 |
| CO₂ | 10.1k metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 8 metric tons |
| NOₓ | 192 metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 1552 lb/MWh |
Annual totals and CO₂ rate reported by EPA eGRID for 2023. Reference averages are approximate U.S.-wide figures from the same dataset.
| NERC Region | MRO |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.. |
Natural gas plants are the workhorse of the modern grid. Combined-cycle units achieve very high efficiency and can ramp up and down quickly to balance variable renewables. They emit roughly half the CO₂ per MWh of coal and far less of other pollutants, but they still release upstream methane during fuel extraction.