3rd largest plant in North Dakota · 469th nationally
Milton R Young is a coal power plant in North Dakota with a nameplate capacity of 734 MW. It generates roughly 4.5M MWh per year — enough to power about 428,942 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 70% puts it in the middle range — running steadily but not full-time. At 2426 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 (734 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 | Milton R Young |
|---|---|
| Operator | Minnkota Power Coop, Inc |
| City | Center |
| County | Oliver County |
| State | North Dakota |
| ZIP | 58530 |
| Coordinates | 47.06585, -101.21309 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Conventional Steam Coal | Lignite | 477 MW | Operating | 1977 |
| 1 | Conventional Steam Coal | Lignite | 257 MW | Operating | 1970 |
| Owner | Location | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Square Butte Electrical Cooperative | Grand Forks, ND | 10000.0% |
Ownership reported to EIA Form 860. Percentages reflect reported generator-level ownership share, averaged when a plant has multiple generators.
| CO₂ | 5.5M metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 2.0k metric tons |
| NOₓ | 8.3k metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 2426 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.