30th largest plant in Iowa · 1392nd nationally
Prairie Creek is a coal power plant in Iowa with a nameplate capacity of 213 MW. It generates roughly 81.6k MWh per year — enough to power about 7,775 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 4% reflects intermittent or peaking operation. At 2394 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 (213 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 | Prairie Creek |
|---|---|
| Operator | Interstate Power And Light Co |
| City | Cedar Rapids |
| County | Linn County |
| State | Iowa |
| ZIP | 52404 |
| Coordinates | 41.94404, -91.63917 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 149 MW | Operating | 1967 |
| 3 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 50.0 MW | Operating | 1958 |
| 2 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 23.0 MW | Retired | 1951 |
| 1 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 14.6 MW | Operating | 1997 |
| CO₂ | 97.7k metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 227 metric tons |
| NOₓ | 146 metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 2394 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.