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Mankato Energy Center

Gas power plant in Minnesota, United States of America. Approximate location 44.1988, -94.003.

GasMinnesotaUnited States of America

Mankato Energy Center is a 719 MW gas power station in Minnesota, United States of America. It is operated by Southern Power Co. Based on reported annual generation of 2,054 GWh, it can supply roughly 586,914 homes. It ranks #481 of 9,833 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 2009, it is around 17 years old — relatively modern. 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).

719MW installed capacity
2,054GWh reported / yr
586,914homes powered
2009commissioned (~17 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0056104.

~821,680 t CO₂/yr (estimated) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

191,534passenger cars driven for a year
107,157homes' yearly energy use
13,694,667tree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

Estimated, not measured: from reported annual generation × a typical gas emission factor (~400 g CO₂/kWh, IPCC AR5 / US EIA). Actual emissions depend on plant efficiency and running hours.Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies.

Reported generation trend

2013: 598 GWh20132014: 355 GWh20142015: 0 GWh20152016: 861 GWh20162017: 697 GWh20172018: 486 GWh20182019: 2,054 GWh20192k GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Southern Power Co. 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 hot-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 44.2°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

7.1°Cannual mean temp
4,240heating degree-days (base 18°C)
290cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
302 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -11 °CJF: -7 °CFM: 0 °CMA: 8 °CAM: 15 °CMJ: 20 °CJJ: 22 °CJA: 21 °CAS: 16 °CSO: 9 °CON: 0 °CND: -8 °CD22 °C

Heating degree-days here run 72% 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: 87/100 — 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.

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.

How it compares & nearby plants

The #248 largest gas power plant of 1818 in United States of America by capacity.

United States of America has 1818 gas power plants in this dataset, together about 546,436 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 44.1988, -94.003 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

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