Edgewater

Coal power plant in Wisconsin, United States of America. Approximate location 43.7151, -87.7059.

CoalWisconsinUnited States of AmericaSteamAnnouncedCO₂ measured

Edgewater is a 414 MW coal power station in Wisconsin, United States of America. It is operated by Wisconsin Power & Light Co. Based on reported annual generation of 1,427 GWh, it can supply roughly 408k homes. It ranks #1407 of 10,938 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Its annual emissions of 2,086,756 t CO₂/yr (US EPA GHGRP) are equivalent to about 486k 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).

414Source-backed capacity
1,427GWh reported / yr
407,742homes powered
2,086,756t CO₂ / yr (US EPA GHGRP)
1985Announced year

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0004050.

Data status

Known data

FacilityEdgewater WRI
CountryUnited States of America · Wisconsin WRI
Coordinates43.7151, -87.7059 WRI
FuelCoal WRI
MW installed capacity414 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerWisconsin Power & Light Co WRI
Commissioned1985 WRI
TechnologySteam WRI
GWh reported / yr1,427 GWh/yr WRI
CO₂ emissions2,086,756 t CO₂/yr measured · US EPA GHGRP

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#1407 of 10938 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#457 of 802 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers0.74× · 558 MW median · 802 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent407,742 calculated from reported generation
Climate8.4°C · HDD 3,636 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 41/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset

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

Data provenance

The capacity and/or fuel fields on this page include a source-backed provenance label from GEM, an official registry, Wikidata, OSM, or a cross-source match.

capacity: GEM tracker 2026 (location L100000104269); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 414 MW, Edgewater is below the median coal plant in United States of America (558 MW). Technically it is described as Steam. Its current lifecycle status is “announced” — so it is not yet, or no longer, generating at full output. 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.

2,086,756 t CO₂/yr — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

486kpassenger cars driven for a year
272khomes' yearly energy use
35 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

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

Reported generation trend

2013: 0 GWh20132014: 0 GWh20142015: 3,897 GWh20152016: 3,455 GWh20162017: 3,791 GWh20172018: 3,287 GWh20182019: 1,427 GWh20194k GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Wisconsin Power & Light Co. All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a warm-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 43.7°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

8.4°Cannual mean temp
3,636heating degree-days (base 18°C)
150cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
175 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -4 °CJF: -2 °CFM: 1 °CMA: 5 °CAM: 10 °CMJ: 16 °CJJ: 20 °CJA: 20 °CAS: 17 °CSO: 11 °CON: 5 °CND: 0 °CD20 °C

Heating degree-days here run 48% 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: 79/100 — this site sits in the top 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

For a plant’s outdoor hardware — heat-recovery steam generators (HRSG), expansion joints, valves, flanges and their insulation — the local climate sets how fast unprotected steel and coatings degrade. This site sits in a corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with marine corrosion the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
41/100environmental-severity index
24.0°Cseasonal temperature swing
5 kmdistance to coast

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

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 #457 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 43.7151, -87.7059 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Edgewater?

Edgewater is a 414 MW source-record coal power plant in Wisconsin, United States of America, planned/announced for 1985.

How much electricity does Edgewater generate?

Edgewater generates about 1,427 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can Edgewater power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 407,742 homes.

Who operates Edgewater?

Edgewater is operated by Wisconsin Power & Light Co.

How much CO₂ does Edgewater emit?

Edgewater has measured emissions of about 2,086,756 tonnes of CO₂ per year (US EPA GHGRP).

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