Apache Generating Station — United States of America
Coal power plant in Arizona, United States of America. Approximate location 32.061875, -109.894686.
CoalArizonaUnited States of Americasubcritical
Apache Generating Station is a 408 MW coal power station in Arizona, United States of America. It is operated by Arizona Electric Power Cooperative Inc [100%]. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 511k homes (estimated). It ranks #1360 of 10,884 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1979, it is around 47 years old — long-established. In context, coal supplies about 16.3% of United States of America's electricity; the national grid averages 384 gCO₂/kWh (43.0% low-carbon) (2025).
Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id GEM_coa_apache_unite.
Data status
Known data
Calculated from dataset
Not available
Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.
Capacity provenance
The public capacity above is the current source-record value. A 2026 tracker candidate lists 204 MW for Apache Generating Station, but it is not used as the public primary value until scope is verified (unit vs operating vs installed/project total).
Data provenance
Source of the capacity and fuel values:
capacity: GEM · 2026 · L100000103787; fuel: GEM GCPT
In context: how this plant compares
At 408 MW, Apache Generating Station is below the median coal plant in United States of America (558 MW). Technically it is described as subcritical. Coal plants burn pulverised coal to raise high-pressure steam for a turbine; they run as baseload but are the most carbon-intensive mainstream source and the first targeted for retirement or efficiency retrofits.
Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.
Key facts
- Share of United States of America coal capacity
- less than 0.1% of 621,194 MW across 802 plants in this dataset
- Age among peers
- 435 of 745 dated coal plants in United States of America are older
Calculated from the capacity and generation records in this dataset (WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0)).
Capacity vs largest coal plants in United States of America
Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).
Owner
Operated by Arizona Electric Power Cooperative Inc [100%].
Local climate & thermal context
This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a cold semi-arid steppe climate (Köppen BSk) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 32.1°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.
Monthly mean temperature
Heating degree-days here run 43% below the median power plant in this dataset — a proxy for how much extra energy heated equipment must replace through its surfaces in winter.
Climate heat-demand index: 32/100 — this site sits in the bottom third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.
Climate normals: WorldClim 2.1 (1970–2000 monthly normals, 10 arc-min, CC BY 4.0); zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid). Degree-days & heat-demand index computed by PowerAtlas — a modelled heat-demand proxy, not a measured site figure.
Site climate & environmental severity
This site sits in a benign, low-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C1 — Very low), with dust abrasion the leading environmental stress.
Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.
How it compares & nearby plants
The #461 largest coal power plant of 802 in United States of America by capacity.
United States of America has 802 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 621,194 MW of capacity.
Nearby power plants
- Apache Station · Gas · 660.7 MW · Arizona
- Apache Solar 1 · Solar · 20 MW · Arizona
- Sulphur Springs · Solar · 20 MW · Arizona
- Red Horse III · Solar · 30 MW · Arizona
- Red Horse 2 · Solar · 81 MW · Arizona
- Fort Huachuca Solar PV Project · Solar · 17.7 MW · Arizona
Location
Coordinates 32.061875, -109.894686 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.
Frequently asked questions
What type of power plant is Apache Generating Station?
Apache Generating Station is a 408 MW coal power plant in Arizona, United States of America, commissioned in 1979.
Who operates Apache Generating Station?
Apache Generating Station is operated by Arizona Electric Power Cooperative Inc [100%].