Richard H. Gorsuch Generating Station — United States of America

Richard H. Gorsuch Generating Station is a 200 MW coal power station in West Virginia, United States of America. It is operated by American Municipal Power Inc [100%]. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 250k homes (estimated). It ranks #1998 of 10,884 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1988, it is around 38 years old — long-established. In context, coal supplies about 16.3% of United States of America's electricity; the national grid averages 384 gCO₂/kWh (43.0% low-carbon) (2025).

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

Data provenance

Capacity and fuel are the upstream open-dataset record, not yet matched to a 2026 registry or GEM entry.

capacity: GEM GCPT; fuel: GEM GCPT

In context: how this plant compares

At 200 MW, Richard H. Gorsuch Generating Station is below the median coal plant in United States of America (558 MW). Technically it is described as subcritical. Coal plants burn pulverised coal to raise high-pressure steam for a turbine; they run as baseload but are the most carbon-intensive mainstream source and the first targeted for retirement or efficiency retrofits.

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

Key facts

Share of United States of America coal capacity

less than 0.1% of 621,194 MW across 802 plants in this dataset

Age among peers

588 of 745 dated coal plants in United States of America are older

Calculated from the capacity and generation records in this dataset (WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0)).

Capacity vs largest coal plants in United States of America

Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).

Owner

Operated by American Municipal Power Inc [100%].

Climate zone & how it works

This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 39.4°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

Climate zone & typical temperatures: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid).

Site climate & environmental severity

This site sits in a mild atmospheric environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C2 — Low), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

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 #594 largest coal power plant of 802 in United States of America by capacity.

United States of America has 802 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 621,194 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

• Pleasants Energy LLC · Gas · 344 MW · Ohio
• Willow Island Hydroelectric Plant · Hydro · 44 MW · Ohio
• Pleasants power station · Coal · 1,368 MW · West Virginia
• Willow Island power station · Coal · 213.2 MW · West Virginia
• FirstEnergy Pleasants Power Station · Coal · 1,368 MW · Ohio
• Waterford Power LLC · Gas · 921.6 MW · Ohio

Location

Coordinates 39.3672, -81.5188 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions