Goat Lake Hydro

Hydro power plant in Alaska, United States of America. Approximate location 59.5357, -135.2123.

HydroAlaskaUnited States of America

Goat Lake Hydro is a 4 MW hydro power plant in Alaska, United States of America. It is operated by Alaska Power and Telephone Co. Based on reported annual generation of 15 GWh, it can supply roughly 4.4k homes. It ranks #7601 of 10,938 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1998, it is around 28 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).

4Source-backed capacity
15GWh reported / yr
4,400homes powered
1998commissioned (~28 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0007751.

Data status

Known data

FacilityGoat Lake Hydro WRI
CountryUnited States of America · Alaska WRI
Coordinates59.5357, -135.2123 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity4 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerAlaska Power and Telephone Co WRI
Commissioned1998 WRI
GWh reported / yr15 GWh/yr WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#7601 of 10938 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#942 of 1449 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers0.50× · 8 MW median · 1449 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent4,400 calculated from reported generation
Climate-2.6°C · HDD 7,499 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC1 · 16/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

TechnologyNot available not in dataset
GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset
CO₂ emissionsnot applicable not applicable

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: Wikidata P2109 nameplate capacity; fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 4 MW, Goat Lake Hydro is below the median hydro plant in United States of America (8 MW). Hydropower converts the energy of falling or flowing water into electricity; output depends on rainfall and reservoir level, and large dams also provide grid balancing and storage.

Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.

Reported generation trend

2013: 16 GWh20132014: 15 GWh20142015: 16 GWh20152016: 17 GWh20162017: 16 GWh20172018: 15 GWh20182019: 15 GWh201917 GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Alaska Power and Telephone Co. All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a polar tundra climate (Köppen ET) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 59.5°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

-2.6°Cannual mean temp
7,499heating degree-days (base 18°C)
0cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
1,412 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -13 °CJF: -10 °CFM: -9 °CMA: -4 °CAM: 1 °CMJ: 5 °CJJ: 7 °CJA: 7 °CAS: 3 °CSO: -2 °CON: -8 °CND: -10 °CD7 °C

Heating degree-days here run 205% 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: 100/100 — 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 benign, low-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C1 — Very low), with thermal cycling the leading environmental stress.

C1ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
16/100environmental-severity index
20.3°Cseasonal temperature swing
168 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 #942 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 102,513 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 59.5357, -135.2123 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Goat Lake Hydro?

Goat Lake Hydro is a 4 MW source-record hydro power plant in Alaska, United States of America, commissioned in 1998.

How much electricity does Goat Lake Hydro generate?

Goat Lake Hydro generates about 15 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can Goat Lake Hydro power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 4,400 homes.

Who operates Goat Lake Hydro?

Goat Lake Hydro is operated by Alaska Power and Telephone Co.

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