62nd largest plant in South Carolina · 4579th nationally
Savannah River Site Biomass Cogen is a biomass power plant in South Carolina with a nameplate capacity of 20.8 MW. It generates roughly 54.7k MWh per year — enough to power about 5,211 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 30% reflects intermittent or peaking operation. At 97 lb CO₂/MWh, its emission rate sits below the national grid average of roughly 800 lb/MWh.
Ghost bars are each month's theoretical maximum (20.8 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 | Savannah River Site Biomass Cogen |
|---|---|
| Operator | Ameresco |
| City | Aiken |
| County | Aiken County |
| State | South Carolina |
| ZIP | 29808 |
| Coordinates | 33.28333, -81.66667 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wood/Wood Waste Biomass | Wood/Wood Waste | 20.8 MW | Operating | 2012 |
| Owner | Location | Share |
|---|---|---|
| U S Department Of Energy | Washington, DC | 10000.0% |
Ownership reported to EIA Form 860. Percentages reflect reported generator-level ownership share, averaged when a plant has multiple generators.
| CO₂ | 2.7k metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 5 metric tons |
| NOₓ | 22 metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 97 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 | Dominion Energy South Carolina |
Biomass plants burn wood, agricultural waste, or methane from landfills to generate steam and electricity. They are considered carbon-neutral over long timescales when fuel is sustainably sourced, but they produce particulate emissions similar to coal.