417th largest plant in Minnesota · 11524th nationally
St. Olaf Wind Turbine is a wind power plant in Minnesota with a nameplate capacity of 1.6 MW. It generates roughly 2.5k MWh per year — enough to power about 236 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 18% reflects intermittent or peaking operation.
| Plant Name | St. Olaf Wind Turbine |
|---|---|
| Operator | St. Olaf College |
| City | Northfield |
| County | Rice County |
| State | Minnesota |
| ZIP | 55057 |
| Coordinates | 44.46222, -93.19278 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OLFWT | Onshore Wind Turbine | Wind | 1.6 MW | Operating | 2006 |
| NERC Region | MRO |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.. |
Wind farms harvest kinetic energy from moving air using large rotor blades coupled to generators. Like solar, they produce zero emissions but vary with weather. Onshore wind capacity factors typically run 30–45%; offshore can exceed 50%.