66th largest plant in Oklahoma · 2067th nationally
Ponca is a natural gas power plant in Oklahoma with a nameplate capacity of 134 MW. It generates roughly 31.0k MWh per year — enough to power about 2,949 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 3% reflects intermittent or peaking operation. At 1118 lb CO₂/MWh, its emission rate sits above the national grid average of roughly 800 lb/MWh.
| Plant Name | Ponca |
|---|---|
| Operator | Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority |
| City | Ponca City |
| County | Kay County |
| State | Oklahoma |
| ZIP | 74601 |
| Coordinates | 36.71979, -97.08576 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 48.0 MW | Retired | 1977 |
| CO₂ | 17.3k metric tons |
|---|---|
| NOₓ | 12 metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 1118 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 | Southwest Power Pool |
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.