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Quad Cities Generating Station

Nuclear power plant in Iowa, United States of America. Approximate location 41.7261, -90.3103.

NuclearIowaUnited States of America

Quad Cities Generating Station is a 2,019 MW nuclear power station in Iowa, United States of America. It is operated by Exelon Nuclear. Based on reported annual generation of 15,486 GWh, it can supply roughly 4,424,600 homes. It ranks #74 of 9,833 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1973, it is around 53 years old — an older, legacy facility. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, nuclear supplies about 17.4% of United States of America's electricity; the national grid averages 384 gCO₂/kWh (43.0% low-carbon) (2025).

2,019MW installed capacity
15,486GWh reported / yr
4,424,600homes powered
1973commissioned (~53 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0000880.

Reported generation trend

2013: 15,554 GWh20132014: 15,386 GWh20142015: 15,562 GWh20152016: 15,655 GWh20162017: 15,402 GWh20172018: 15,476 GWh20182019: 15,486 GWh201916k GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Exelon Nuclear. All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This nuclear plant uses heat from nuclear fission to raise steam for a turbine-generator. It sits in a hot-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 41.7°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

9.6°Cannual mean temp
3,442heating degree-days (base 18°C)
411cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
196 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -7 °CJF: -4 °CFM: 3 °CMA: 10 °CAM: 16 °CMJ: 21 °CJJ: 24 °CJA: 22 °CAS: 18 °CSO: 11 °CON: 4 °CND: -3 °CD24 °C

Heating degree-days here run 40% 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: 74/100 — 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 #24 largest nuclear power plant of 58 in United States of America by capacity.

United States of America has 58 nuclear power plants in this dataset, together about 104,233 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 41.7261, -90.3103 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

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