1st largest plant in Texas · 4th nationally
W A Parish is a coal power plant in Texas with a nameplate capacity of 4,008 MW. It generates roughly 10.7M MWh per year — enough to power about 1,023,167 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 31% reflects intermittent or peaking operation. At 2032 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 (4,008 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 | W A Parish |
|---|---|
| Operator | Nrg Texas Power Llc |
| City | Thompsons |
| County | Fort Bend County |
| State | Texas |
| ZIP | 77481 |
| Coordinates | 29.48280, -95.63110 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 734 MW | Operating | 1977 |
| 6 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 734 MW | Operating | 1978 |
| 8 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 654 MW | Operating | 1982 |
| 7 | Conventional Steam Coal | Subbituminous Coal | 615 MW | Operating | 1980 |
| 4 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 581 MW | Operating | 1968 |
| 3 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 299 MW | Operating | 1961 |
| 1 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 188 MW | Operating | 1958 |
| 2 | Natural Gas Steam Turbine | Natural Gas | 188 MW | Operating | 1958 |
| GT1 | Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine | Natural Gas | 16.3 MW | Operating | 1967 |
| CO₂ | 10.9M metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 28.5k metric tons |
| NOₓ | 5.0k metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 2032 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 | TRE |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Electric Reliability Council Of Texas, Inc. |
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.