Lincoln Combustion

Gas power plant in North Carolina, United States of America. Approximate location 35.4317, -81.0347.

GasNorth CarolinaUnited States of AmericaOCGTCO₂ measured

Lincoln Combustion is a 2,296 MW gas power station in North Carolina, United States of America. It is operated by Duke Energy Carolinas LLC. Based on reported annual generation of 24 GWh, it can supply roughly 7.0k homes. It ranks #167 of 10,938 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1995, it is around 31 years old — long-established. Its annual emissions of 19,532 t CO₂/yr (US EPA GHGRP) are equivalent to about 4.6k cars driven for a year. In context, gas supplies about 40.0% of United States of America's electricity; the national grid averages 384 gCO₂/kWh (43.0% low-carbon) (2025).

2,296Source-backed capacity
24GWh reported / yr
7,000homes powered
19,532t CO₂ / yr (US EPA GHGRP)
1995commissioned (~31 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0007277.

Data status

Known data

FacilityLincoln Combustion WRI
CountryUnited States of America · North Carolina WRI
Coordinates35.4317, -81.0347 WRI
FuelGas WRI
MW installed capacity2,296 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerDuke Energy Carolinas LLC WRI
Commissioned1995 WRI
TechnologyOCGT WRI
GWh reported / yr24 GWh/yr WRI
CO₂ emissions19,532 t CO₂/yr measured · US EPA GHGRP

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#167 of 10938 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#31 of 2165 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers18.94× · 121 MW median · 2165 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent7,000 calculated from reported generation
Climate15.2°C · HDD 1,759 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC3 · 35/100 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.

Capacity provenance

The public capacity above is the current source-record value. A 2026 tracker candidate lists 2,296 MW for Lincoln Combustion power station, but it is not used as the public primary value until scope is verified (unit vs operating vs installed/project total).

Capacity claim grade: A3_MAJOR_REVIEW_SCOPE_STATUS - recommended action: manual_scope_status_check - confidence: low_until_scope_verified. This follows a claim-based data model: value + scope + source + confidence, rather than silently overwriting records.

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 L100000401861); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 2,296 MW, Lincoln Combustion is well above the median gas plant in United States of America (121 MW). Technically it is described as OCGT. Gas plants burn natural gas either in open-cycle turbines for fast peaking, or in combined-cycle units that recover exhaust heat in an HRSG to reach roughly 55–62% efficiency — the cleanest-burning fossil option.

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

19,532 t CO₂/yr — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

4.6kpassenger cars driven for a year
2.5khomes' yearly energy use
326ktree 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: 58 GWh20132014: 70 GWh20142015: 49 GWh20152016: 46 GWh20162017: 18 GWh20172018: 82 GWh20182019: 24 GWh201982 GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Duke Energy Carolinas LLC. All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This gas plant burns natural gas in a turbine — often in a combined-cycle setup — to generate electricity. It sits in a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 35.4°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

15.2°Cannual mean temp
1,759heating degree-days (base 18°C)
761cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
230 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 4 °CJF: 6 °CFM: 10 °CMA: 15 °CAM: 19 °CMJ: 23 °CJJ: 26 °CJA: 25 °CAS: 22 °CSO: 16 °CON: 10 °CND: 6 °CD26 °C

Heating degree-days here run 28% 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: 39/100 — this site sits in the mid third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

A gas turbine here also runs ~0% below its ISO (15°C) rating at this annual mean (typical CCGT curve, estimate).

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 moderately corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C3 — Medium), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C3ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
35/100environmental-severity index
21.3°Cseasonal temperature swing
321 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 #31 largest gas power plant of 2165 in United States of America by capacity.

United States of America has 2165 gas power plants in this dataset, together about 789,950 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 35.4317, -81.0347 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Lincoln Combustion?

Lincoln Combustion is a 2,296 MW source-record gas power plant in North Carolina, United States of America, commissioned in 1995.

How much electricity does Lincoln Combustion generate?

Lincoln Combustion generates about 24 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can Lincoln Combustion power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 7,000 homes.

Who operates Lincoln Combustion?

Lincoln Combustion is operated by Duke Energy Carolinas LLC.

How much CO₂ does Lincoln Combustion emit?

Lincoln Combustion has measured emissions of about 19,532 tonnes of CO₂ per year (US EPA GHGRP).

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