Redfield is retired. EIA's monthly generator inventory (EIA-860M, August 2026) lists every generator at this natural gas plant as retired; the last one retired in June 2014. It is not counted among South Dakota's operating plants or in any ranking on this site.
The figures below describe the plant when it ran: equipment from EIA Form 860 (2024).
The 3.9 MW is nameplate capacity: the most this plant's generators are rated to produce, not what it actually generates. EPA eGRID reports no positive net generation for it this year.
How it works
Why the numbers look like this: engines start in minutes and come in small blocks, so they show up at landfills, on islands and as backup or peaking units — places that need power in small, fast pieces.
| Address | West 3rd Street |
|---|---|
| City | Redfield |
| County | Spink County |
| State | South Dakota |
| ZIP | 57469 |
| Coordinates | 44.87694, -98.52417 |
| Operator | Northwestern Energy - (SD) |
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Nameplate capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 1.3 MW | Retired | 1962 |
| 2 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 1.3 MW | Retired | 1962 |
| 3 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 1.3 MW | Retired | 1962 |
| 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.