43rd largest plant in Michigan · 2133rd nationally
T B Simon Power Plant is a natural gas power plant in Michigan with a nameplate capacity of 128 MW. It generates roughly 244.9k MWh per year — enough to power about 23,323 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 22% reflects intermittent or peaking operation.
Ghost bars are each month's theoretical maximum (128 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 | T B Simon Power Plant |
|---|---|
| Operator | Michigan State University |
| City | East Lansing |
| County | Ingham County |
| State | Michigan |
| ZIP | 48824 |
| Coordinates | 42.71780, -84.48360 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GEN5 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 24.0 MW | Operating | 2006 |
| GEN4 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 21.0 MW | Operating | 1993 |
| GEN11 | Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine | Natural Gas | 15.0 MW | Regulatory | — |
| GEN3 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 15.0 MW | Operating | 1974 |
| GEN6 | Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine | Natural Gas | 14.3 MW | Operating | 2006 |
| GEN1 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 12.5 MW | Operating | 1965 |
| GEN2 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 12.5 MW | Operating | 1966 |
| GEN7 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 9.4 MW | Operating | 2022 |
| GEN8 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 9.4 MW | Operating | 2022 |
| GEN9 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | Natural Gas | 9.4 MW | Operating | 2022 |
| NOₓ | 142 metric tons |
|---|
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 | RFC |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.. |
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.