4th largest plant in West Virginia · 138th nationally
Mitchell (Wv) is a coal power plant in West Virginia with a nameplate capacity of 1,633 MW. It generates roughly 3.3M MWh per year — enough to power about 316,886 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 23% reflects intermittent or peaking operation. At 2349 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 (1,633 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 | Mitchell (Wv) |
|---|---|
| Operator | Kentucky Power Co |
| City | Captina |
| County | Marshall County |
| State | West Virginia |
| ZIP | 26041 |
| Coordinates | 39.82970, -80.81530 |
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 | Bituminous Coal | 816 MW | Operating | 1971 |
| 2 | Conventional Steam Coal | Bituminous Coal | 816 MW | Operating | 1971 |
| Owner | Location | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Wheeling Power Co | Columbus, OH | 5000.0% |
| Kentucky Power Co | Columbus, OH | 5000.0% |
Ownership reported to EIA Form 860. Percentages reflect reported generator-level ownership share, averaged when a plant has multiple generators.
| CO₂ | 3.9M metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 1.2k metric tons |
| NOₓ | 1.6k metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 2349 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 | RFC |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Pjm Interconnection, Llc |
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.