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Curtis Palmer Hydroelectric

Hydro power plant in New York, United States of America. Approximate location 43.2469, -73.8281.

HydroNew YorkUnited States of America

Curtis Palmer Hydroelectric is a 59 MW hydro power plant in New York, United States of America. It is operated by Palmer Hydroelectric. Based on reported annual generation of 410 GWh, it can supply roughly 117,257 homes. It ranks #2566 of 9,833 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1985, it is around 41 years old — long-established. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 5.3% of United States of America's electricity; the national grid averages 384 gCO₂/kWh (43.0% low-carbon) (2025).

59MW installed capacity
410GWh reported / yr
117,257homes powered
1985commissioned (~41 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0054580.

Reported generation trend

2013: 314 GWh20132014: 320 GWh20142015: 287 GWh20152016: 265 GWh20162017: 373 GWh20172018: 322 GWh20182019: 410 GWh2019410 GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Palmer Hydroelectric.

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a warm-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 43.2°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

8.0°Cannual mean temp
3,821heating degree-days (base 18°C)
197cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
111 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -7 °CJF: -5 °CFM: 0 °CMA: 8 °CAM: 14 °CMJ: 19 °CJJ: 21 °CJA: 20 °CAS: 16 °CSO: 9 °CON: 4 °CND: -3 °CD21 °C

Heating degree-days here run 55% above 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: 82/100 — this site sits in the top third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

In colder climates, uninsulated hot equipment (boilers, turbines, valves, steam lines) loses proportionally more heat to ambient air — exactly the loss Inzonex modular insulation is designed to cut.

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.

How it compares & nearby plants

The #272 largest hydro power plant of 1449 in United States of America by capacity.

United States of America has 1449 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 101,657 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 43.2469, -73.8281 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

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