23rd largest plant in Texas · 265th nationally
Tolk is a coal power plant in Texas with a nameplate capacity of 1,136 MW. It generates roughly 2.7M MWh per year — enough to power about 257,868 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 27% reflects intermittent or peaking operation. At 2292 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 (1,136 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 | Tolk |
|---|---|
| Operator | Southwestern Public Service Co |
| City | Muleshoe |
| County | Lamb County |
| State | Texas |
| ZIP | 79371 |
| Coordinates | 34.18649, -102.56999 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 568 MW | Operating | 1982 |
| 2 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 568 MW | Operating | 1985 |
| CO₂ | 3.1M metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 8.4k metric tons |
| NOₓ | 2.2k metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 2292 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 | Southwest Power Pool |
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.