64th largest plant in Missouri · 4071st nationally
Poplar Bluff Generating Station is a natural gas power plant in Missouri with a nameplate capacity of 34.1 MW. It generates roughly 579 MWh per year — enough to power about 55 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 0% reflects intermittent or peaking operation. At 3479 lb CO₂/MWh, its emission rate sits above the national grid average of roughly 800 lb/MWh.
| Plant Name | Poplar Bluff Generating Station |
|---|---|
| Operator | City Of Poplar Bluff - (Mo) |
| City | Poplar Bluff |
| County | Butler County |
| State | Missouri |
| ZIP | 63901 |
| Coordinates | 36.75970, -90.39030 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 7.0 MW | Operating | 1976 |
| 2 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 7.0 MW | Operating | 1976 |
| 3 | Petroleum Liquids | Distillate Oil | 6.7 MW | Operating | 2002 |
| 4 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 6.7 MW | Operating | 2002 |
| 5 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 6.7 MW | Operating | 2002 |
| CO₂ | 1.0k metric tons |
|---|---|
| NOₓ | 20 metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 3479 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 | SERC |
|---|---|
| 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.