12th largest plant in Washington · 473rd nationally
Transalta Centralia Generation is a coal power plant in Washington with a nameplate capacity of 730 MW. It generates roughly 4.1M MWh per year — enough to power about 394,606 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 65% puts it in the middle range — running steadily but not full-time. At 2394 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 (730 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 | Transalta Centralia Generation |
|---|---|
| Operator | Transalta Centralia Gen Llc |
| City | Centralia |
| County | Lewis County |
| State | Washington |
| ZIP | 98531 |
| Coordinates | 46.75594, -122.85976 |
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 | RC | 730 MW | Retired | 1972 |
| 2 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 730 MW | Operating | 1973 |
| 70 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | Natural Gas | 80.0 MW | Retired | 2002 |
| 30 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | Natural Gas | 60.5 MW | Retired | 2002 |
| 40 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | Natural Gas | 60.5 MW | Retired | 2002 |
| 50 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | Natural Gas | 60.5 MW | Retired | 2002 |
| 60 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | Natural Gas | 60.5 MW | Retired | 2002 |
| CO₂ | 5.0M metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 1.2k metric tons |
| NOₓ | 4.1k metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 2394 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 | WECC |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Bonneville Power Administration |
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.