Reynolds

Oil power plant in Illinois, United States of America. Approximate location 39.8069, -89.6417.

OilIllinoisUnited States of AmericaCO₂ modelled

Reynolds is a 18 MW oil power plant in Illinois, United States of America. It is operated by City of Springfield - (IL). Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 13k homes (estimated). It ranks #5031 of 10,938 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1970, it is around 56 years old — an older, legacy facility. Its modelled annual emissions are 11,493 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 2.7k cars driven for a year. In context, oil supplies about 0.7% of United States of America's electricity; the national grid averages 384 gCO₂/kWh (43.0% low-carbon) (2025).

18Source-backed capacity
13,140homes powered (est.)
11,493t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)
1970commissioned (~56 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0000965.

Data status

Known data

FacilityReynolds WRI
CountryUnited States of America · Illinois WRI
Coordinates39.8069, -89.6417 WRI
FuelOil WRI
MW installed capacity18 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerCity of Springfield - (IL) WRI
Commissioned1970 WRI

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions11,493 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#5031 of 10938 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#245 of 902 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers2.43× · 7 MW median · 902 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent13,140 calculated
Climate11.7°C · HDD 2,855 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC2 · 34/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

TechnologyNot available not in dataset
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: Wikidata P2109 nameplate capacity; fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 18 MW, Reynolds is well above the median oil plant in United States of America (7 MW). Oil-fired plants burn heavy fuel oil or diesel, usually as peaking or backup capacity on islands and grids without gas pipelines; high fuel cost keeps their utilisation low.

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

~11,493 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

2.7kpassenger cars driven for a year
1.5khomes' yearly energy use
192ktree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; modelled emissions from Climate TRACE.

Reported generation trend

2013: 0 GWh20132014: 0 GWh20142015: 0 GWh20152016: 0 GWh20162017: 0 GWh20172018: 0 GWh20182019: 0 GWh20190 GWh

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

Owner

Operated by City of Springfield - (IL).

Local climate & thermal context

This oil plant burns oil or diesel to drive turbines or reciprocating engines. It sits in a hot-summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 39.8°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

11.7°Cannual mean temp
2,855heating degree-days (base 18°C)
581cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
175 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -4 °CJF: -1 °CFM: 6 °CMA: 12 °CAM: 18 °CMJ: 23 °CJJ: 25 °CJA: 24 °CAS: 20 °CSO: 13 °CON: 6 °CND: 0 °CD25 °C

Heating degree-days here run 16% 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: 58/100 — this site sits in the mid 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 mild atmospheric environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C2 — Low), with thermal cycling the leading environmental stress.

C2ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
34/100environmental-severity index
28.5°Cseasonal temperature swing
297 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 #245 largest oil power plant of 902 in United States of America by capacity.

United States of America has 902 oil power plants in this dataset, together about 40,022 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 39.8069, -89.6417 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Reynolds?

Reynolds is a 18 MW source-record oil power plant in Illinois, United States of America, commissioned in 1970.

How many homes can Reynolds power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 13,140 homes (estimated).

Who operates Reynolds?

Reynolds is operated by City of Springfield - (IL).

How much CO₂ does Reynolds emit?

Reynolds has modelled emissions of about 11,493 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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