Home / North America / United States of America / Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers

Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers

Waste power plant in Texas, United States of America. Approximate location 26.2697, -97.867.

WasteTexasUnited States of AmericaCO₂ modelled

Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers is a 25 MW waste power plant in Texas, United States of America. It is operated by Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers Inc.. Based on reported annual generation of 1 GWh, it can supply roughly 200 homes. It ranks #4503 of 10,938 United States of America power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 2000, it is around 26 years old — long-established. Its modelled annual emissions are 179,910 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 42k cars driven for a year. In context, the national grid averages 384 gCO₂/kWh (43.0% low-carbon) (2025).

25Source-backed capacity
1GWh reported / yr
200homes powered
179,910t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)
2000commissioned (~26 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id USA0054338.

Data status

Known data

FacilityRio Grande Valley Sugar Growers WRI
CountryUnited States of America · Texas WRI
Coordinates26.2697, -97.867 WRI
FuelWaste WRI
MW installed capacity25 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerRio Grande Valley Sugar Growers Inc. WRI
Commissioned2000 WRI
GWh reported / yr1 GWh/yr WRI

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions179,910 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#4503 of 10938 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#129 of 551 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers3.77× · 7 MW median · 551 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent200 calculated from reported generation
Climate22.9°C · HDD 197 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 44/100 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 25 MW, Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers is well above the median waste plant in United States of America (7 MW). Waste-to-energy plants burn municipal solid waste to generate electricity and heat, cutting landfill volume while recovering energy from residual waste.

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

~179,910 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

42kpassenger cars driven for a year
23khomes' yearly energy use
3.0 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

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

Reported generation trend

2013: 3 GWh20132014: 2 GWh20142015: 0 GWh20152016: 2 GWh20162017: 2 GWh20172018: 2 GWh20182019: 1 GWh20193 GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers Inc..

Local climate & thermal context

This waste plant recovers energy by combusting municipal or industrial waste. It sits in a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 26.3°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

22.9°Cannual mean temp
197heating degree-days (base 18°C)
2,010cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
16 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 15 °CJF: 17 °CFM: 20 °CMA: 23 °CAM: 26 °CMJ: 28 °CJJ: 29 °CJA: 29 °CAS: 27 °CSO: 24 °CON: 20 °CND: 16 °CD29 °C

Heating degree-days here run 92% 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: 16/100 — this site sits in the bottom 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 corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
44/100environmental-severity index
14.5°Cseasonal temperature swing
92 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 #129 largest waste power plant of 551 in United States of America by capacity.

United States of America has 551 waste power plants in this dataset, together about 10,154 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 26.2697, -97.867 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers?

Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers is a 25 MW source-record waste power plant in Texas, United States of America, commissioned in 2000.

How much electricity does Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers generate?

Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers generates about 1 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 200 homes.

Who operates Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers?

Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers is operated by Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers Inc..

How much CO₂ does Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers emit?

Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers has modelled emissions of about 179,910 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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