Clover — United States of America

Coal power plant in Virginia, United States of America. Approximate location 36.869, -78.704.

CoalVirginiaUnited States of AmericaCO₂ measured

Clover is a 848 MW coal power station in Virginia, United States of America. It is operated by Virginia Electric & Power Co. Based on reported annual generation of 1,281 GWh, it can supply roughly 366k homes. It ranks #722 of 10,884 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1995, it is around 31 years old — long-established. Its annual emissions of 280,701 t CO₂/yr (US EPA GHGRP) are equivalent to about 65k cars driven for a year. 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).

848MW installed capacity
1,281GWh reported / yr
366,085homes powered
280,701t CO₂ / yr (US EPA GHGRP)
1995commissioned (~31 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0007213.

Data status

Known data

FacilityClover WRI
CountryUnited States of America · Virginia WRI
Coordinates36.869, -78.704 WRI
FuelCoal WRI
MW installed capacity848 MW GEM · 2026 · L100000104235; operating plant capacity
Verification noteQuality label backfilled from existing source-backed capacity provenance on 2026-07-05; capacity value was not changed. source-verified
OwnerVirginia Electric & Power Co WRI
Commissioned1995 WRI
GWh reported / yr1,281 GWh·a⁻¹ WRI
CO₂ emissions280,701 t CO₂·a⁻¹ measured · US EPA GHGRP

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#722 / 10884 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#271 / 802 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers1.52× · 558 MW · n=802 calculated
Homes-powered equivalent366,085 calculated from reported generation
Climate14.2°C · HDD 2,036 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC3 · 34/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

TechnologyNot available not in dataset

Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.

Data provenance

Source of the capacity and fuel values:

capacity: GEM · 2026 · L100000104235; fuel: WRI GPPD

In context: how this plant compares

At 848 MW, Clover is well above the median coal plant in United States of America (558 MW). 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.

280,701 t CO₂/yr — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

1.6krailcars of coal burned
59khomes' electricity use for a year
281kacres of US forest absorbing CO₂ for a year
0.04%of the CO₂ from all United States of America power plants with an emissions figure in PowerAtlas

Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; emissions per US EPA GHGRP (measured for US EPA/EU ETS, modelled for Climate TRACE).

Key facts

Load factor
17%, from 1,281 GWh of reported generation; the median for 244 coal plants in United States of America that report generation is 41%
Generation trend
5,919 GWh in 2013 and 1,281 GWh in 2019 (−78%)
Highest and lowest year
2013: 5,919 GWh; 2019: 1,281 GWh
Share of United States of America coal capacity
0.1% of 621,194 MW across 802 plants in this dataset
Age among peers
667 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)).

Reported generation trend

2013: 5,919 GWh20132014: 5,678 GWh20142015: 5,485 GWh20152016: 5,445 GWh20162017: 3,267 GWh20172018: 2,917 GWh20182019: 1,281 GWh20196k GWh

Annual generation (GWh), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).

Local climate & thermal context

This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 36.9°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

14.2°Cannual mean temp
2,036heating degree-days (base 18°C)
668cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
127 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 3 °CJF: 4 °CFM: 9 °CMA: 14 °CAM: 18 °CMJ: 23 °CJJ: 25 °CJA: 24 °CAS: 21 °CSO: 14 °CON: 9 °CND: 5 °CD25 °C

Heating degree-days here run 17% 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: 44/100 — this site sits in the mid 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 moderately corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C3 — Medium), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C3ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
34/100environmental-severity index
22.6°Cseasonal temperature swing
294 kmdistance to coast

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 #271 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

Location

Coordinates 36.869, -78.704 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Clover?

Clover is a 848 MW coal power plant in Virginia, United States of America, commissioned in 1995.

How much electricity does Clover generate?

Clover generates about 1,281 GWh of electricity per year.

Who operates Clover?

Clover is operated by Virginia Electric & Power Co.

How much CO₂ does Clover emit?

Clover has measured emissions of about 280,701 tonnes of CO₂ per year (US EPA GHGRP).

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