2nd largest plant in Iowa · 413th nationally
Louisa is a coal power plant in Iowa with a nameplate capacity of 812 MW. It generates roughly 3.6M MWh per year — enough to power about 344,009 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 51% puts it in the middle range — running steadily but not full-time. At 2231 lb CO₂/MWh, its emission rate sits above the national grid average of roughly 800 lb/MWh.
Ghost bars are each month's theoretical maximum (812 MW nameplate × hours in the month). Filled bars are actual net generation reported to EIA Form 923. The gap between them is capacity factor made visible.
| Plant Name | Louisa |
|---|---|
| Operator | Midamerican Energy Co |
| City | Muscatine |
| County | Louisa County |
| State | Iowa |
| ZIP | 52761 |
| Coordinates | 41.31810, -91.09310 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 812 MW | Operating | 1983 |
| Owner | Location | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Midamerican Energy Co | Urbandale, IA | 8800.0% |
| Central Iowa Power Cooperative | Cedar Rapids, IA | 460.0% |
| Ies Utilities, Inc | Cedar Rapids, IA | 400.0% |
| Waverly Municipal Elec Utility | Waverly, IA | 110.0% |
| Harlan Municipal Utilities - (Ia) | Harlan, IA | 80.0% |
| Eldridge City Utilities | Eldridge, IA | 50.0% |
| City Of Geneseo - (Il) | Geneseo, IL | 50.0% |
| City Of Tipton - (Ia) | Tipton, IA | 50.0% |
Ownership reported to EIA Form 860. Percentages reflect reported generator-level ownership share, averaged when a plant has multiple generators.
| CO₂ | 4.0M metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 6.0k metric tons |
| NOₓ | 3.4k metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 2231 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.. |
Coal plants burn pulverized coal to boil water and spin steam turbines. They emit substantial CO₂, SO₂, and NOₓ along with mercury and particulate matter. Modern units include scrubbers and selective catalytic reduction; older units are increasingly being retired or converted to natural gas as economics shift.