Proposed coal plants in the United States

This article is part of the Global Energy Monitor coverage of coal plants

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For a map and list of all coal plants in the US, go to CoalSwarm's Global Coal Plant Tracker and choose Region Canada/US, Map United States.

Beginning around the year 2000, in response to increases in natural gas prices, utilities across the United States began a renewed push to build new coal-fired electricity generating plants. By the spring of 2007, approximately 150 such projects were either under construction or in various stages of planning. The National Energy Technology Laboratory, a division of the Department of Energy, maintained a database of such projects, but ceased providing project-specific information as of May 2007. Since that report, scores of coal-fired power plants have been canceled, but new proposals have appeared.

To find the proposed coal plants in your state, click on the map, or scroll down to use the links below.

(Note: There are no proposed coal plants in Alabama, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, or Vermont.)

The following sortable table lists proposed coal plants in the United States. Sierra plant names, capacity figures, and status designations are as listed in the Sierra Club's "Stopping the Coal Rush" tracking list as of May 2011.

To sort the table by a column, click on the column header. Clicking a second time on the header will reverse the order of the sort.

State	Plant name (CoalSwarm)	Plant name (Sierra)	Total Capacity (MW)	Status
AK	Alaska Natural Resources-to-Liquids plant	Alaska Natural Resources-to-Liquids Plant	300	uncertain
AK	Alaska Power and Telephone Plant	Alaska Power and Telephone plant		canceled 2009
AK		Cook Inlet Region Inc. Underground Gasification Project	100	uncertain
AK	Fairbanks Coal-to-Liquids	Fairbanks Coal-to-Liquids	60-200	uncertain
AK	Healy Clean Coal Plant	Healy Plant	50	active
AK	Matanuska Power Plant	Matanuska Electric Association's Mat-Su plant	100	canceled 2007
AK	Bethel Power Plant	Nuvista	100	canceled 2007
AK	Western Arctic Coal Project	Western Arctic Coal Project	50	canceled 2009
AK	Kenai Blue Sky Project	Agrium Coal Gasification	350	canceled 2008
AK	CIRI coal to gas plant			active
AK	Eielson Air Force Base Coal-to-Liquids			active
AR	Plum Point Energy Station	Plum Point I	665	operating 2010
AR	Hempstead	Hempstead (AEP)	600	active
AR	Plum Point Energy Station	Plum Point II	665	uncertain
AZ	Bowie IGCC Power Station	Bowie IGCC Power Station	600	canceled 2007
AZ	Springerville Generating Station Unit 3	Springerville	400	operating 2005
AZ	Springerville Generating Station Unit 4	Springerville	400	operating 2009
CA	Hydrogen Energy California	Hydrogen Energy	390	active
CO	AES Colorado Power Project	AES Colorado Power Project	640	canceled 2008
CO	Buick Coal and Power Project	Buick Coal and Power Project	500	canceled 2007
CO	Comanche Generating Station Unit 3	Comanche	750	operating 2010
CO	Ray D. Nixon Power Plant	DOE / Foster Wheeler	150	canceled 2007
CO	High Plains Energy Station	LS Power High Plains Energy Station	600	canceled 2008
CO		Radar Buick Coal Project		uncertain
CO		Radar-West Hawk Buick Coal Project		canceled
CO		Tri-State Colorado Power Project		uncertain
CO	Unnamed Tri-State Plant	Tri-State Front Range plant	1000	canceled 2009
CO	Unnamed Xcel Energy Plant	Xcel Energy IGCC plant	350	canceled 2007
CO		Xcel IGCC plant	600	canceled 2007
CO	Lamar Light & Power / Arkansas River Power Authority			operating 2009
DE	Indian River	Indian River Expansion (IGCC)	630	canceled 2007
FL	Stanton Energy Center	Orange County IGCC Plant	285	canceled 2007
FL	Seminole 3	Seminole	750	canceled 2009
FL	Taylor Energy Center, Alternative Proposal	Southern Company	787	canceled 2007
FL	FPL St. Lucie Plant	St. Lucie		canceled 2005
FL	Taylor Energy Center	Taylor Energy Center	800	canceled 2007
FL	Polk Power Station Unit 6	Polk Power Station 6	630	canceled 2007
FL	Glades	Glades	1960	canceled 2007
FL	FPL Crystal River			operating
FL	Northside Generating Station			operating 2002
GA	Ben Hill Plant	Ben Hill	850	canceled 2013
GA	Longleaf	Longleaf	1200	canceled 2011
GA	Washington Plant	Washington County Power Station	850	active, in litigation
IA	Council Bluffs Energy Center Unit 4	Council Bluffs Energy Center 4	790	operating 2007
IA	Dairyland Chickasaw/Mitchell Plant	Dairyland Power Cooperative	400	canceled 2004
IA	Sutherland Generating Station Unit 4	Marshalltown power plant	649	canceled 2009
IA	LS Power Elk Run Energy Station	LS Power Elk Run Energy Station	750	canceled 2009
ID	Idaho Power Company IGCC Proposal	Idaho Power company	250	canceled 2007
ID	Soda Springs Power Plant Project	Mountain Island Energy Holdings	600	canceled 2007
ID	Power County Advanced Energy Center	Power County		uncertain
ID	Sempra Power Proposal	Sempra Energy Jerome Plant	600	canceled 2006
IL	Drummond Coal-to-Liquids Plant			abandoned
IL	Leucadia Illinois Plant	Leucadia National Corporation		projected 2013
IL	Fayette County Economic Development Project	Clean Coal Power Resources	2400	canceled 2007
IL	Elkhart Proposal (Corn Belt)	Cornbelt	91	canceled 2007
IL	Baldwin Energy Complex	Dynegy/Illinois Power	1300	canceled 2007
IL	Franklin County Power Plant	EnviroPower	600	canceled 2008
IL	FutureGen	FutureGen	275	canceled 2008
IL	FutureGen	FutureGen 2.0	200	active
IL	Illinois Energy Group	Illinois Energy Group	1500	canceled 2007
IL	Elmwood Energy Center	Indeck	600	canceled 2007
IL	Illinois Clean Fuels	American Clean Coal Fuels		abandoned 2009
IL	LoraxAg	LoraxAg		abandoned 2010
IL	Marion Gasification Plant	Madison Power Corp.	600	canceled 2008
IL	Marion Plant
IL	Peabody/Arclight SNG Project
IL		MGP	50	canceled 2011
IL	Power Holdings Company plant	Power Holdings		active
IL	Prairie State Energy Campus	Prairie State/Peabody	1500	progressing
IL	Rentech Energy Midwest Corporation	Rentech	76	canceled 2007
IL	Secure Energy Decatur Gasification Plant	Secure Energy Decatur Gasification Plant		active
IL	Southern Illinois University at Carbondale Plant	SIUC Power Plant	225	canceled 2008
IL		Vulcan's Manteno Lime Plant		active
IL	Dallman Unit 4	Springfield	200	operating 2009
IL	Taylorville Energy Center	Taylorville Energy Center	770	active
IL	Elkhart Proposal (Turris Coal)	Turris Coal Company	35	canceled 2007
IL	United Supply of America Coal Plant	United Supply of America	270	canceled 2005
IL	Southern Illinois Clean Energy Center	Steelhead Energy	545	canceled 2007
IN	Edwardsport Plant	Duke Energy's Edwardsport plant	630	active
IN	Sullivan County Plant	EnviroPower	500	canceled 2003
IN	Indiana SNG	Indiana Gasification	134	upcoming
IN	Crossroads Project	Tondu Corporation	630	canceled 2005
IN	Newport Synfuels Plant	Clean Coal Refining CTL plant		uncertain
IN	Purdue University Wade Utility Plant	Purdue University's Wade Power Plant	50	canceled 2011
KS	Holcomb Expansion	Holcomb / Tri-State	895	active
KS		Kansas BPU Nearman Creek expansion	235	canceled 2007
KS	Westar Energy Kansas Plant	Westar	600	canceled 2007
KS	Great Plains Energy Plant
KY	Fuel Frontiers plant	Fuel Frontiers, Inc.		upcoming
KY	Cash Creek Generation	Cash Creek IGCC	770	active
KY	Clean Coal Power Operations Coal-to-Liquids Plant
KY	Kentucky Pioneer IGCC Demonstration Project			canceled 2006
KY	Coal Synthetics	Coal Synthetics		canceled 2010
KY	Estill County Energy Partners	Estill County Energy Partners	110	uncertain
KY	Kentucky Mountain Power	Kentucky Mountain Power (EnviroPower)	600	canceled 2008
KY		Bell	600	uncertain
KY	Smith Station	Smith	278	canceled 2010
KY	Spurlock Power Station Unit 3	Spurlock	268	operating 2005
KY	Spurlock Power Station Unit 4	Spurlock	268	operating 2009
KY	Thoroughbred Generating Station	Thoroughbred	1500	canceled 2008
KY	Trimble County Generating Station 2	Trimble	750	operating 2011
KY	Black Stallion Energy Center	Black Stallion Energy Center	660	upcoming
KY	NewGas Energy Center	NewGas Energy Center		active
LA	Big Cajun II Unit 4	Big Cajun II Unit 4	705	canceled 2008
LA	Leucadia	Lake Charles Gasification		active
LA	Little Gypsy Repowering	Little Gypsy refit	530	canceled 2009
LA	Rodemacher Unit 3	Rodemacher Power Station	660	operating 2010
LA	Big Cajun I	Big Cajun I	230	active
MA	Somerset Power Generating Station	Somerset Generating Station (Plasma Gasification)	132	canceled 2011
MD	Sparrows Point	Sparrows Point	400	canceled 2007
MD	Garrett County Casselman Clean Coal Project	Garrett County Casselman Clean Coal Project		canceled
MD	AES Warrior Run Generation Plant			operating 1999
MD	Frederick County plant			canceled 2007
ME	Twin River Energy Center	Twin River Energy Center	700	canceled 2007
MI	Northern Michigan University Ripley Heating Plant	NMU Ripley Addition	10	canceled 2009
MI	Northern Lights	Northern Lights	425	canceled 2004
MI	Wolverine Clean Energy Venture	Wolverine Power Plant	600	active
MI	Lansing Board of Water and Light	Lansing	350	canceled 2010
MI	Karn/Weadock Generating Complex Expansion	Consumers Energy Plant	930	canceled 2010
MI		Escanaba Power Plant	300	canceled 2007
MI	Midland Power Plant	Midland power plant	750	canceled 2009
MI	James De Young Generation Station Expansion	James De Young Station	78	active
MI		Great Lakes Energy and Research Park / Alma	750	canceled
MI	TES Filer City Station Repowering	TES Filer IGCC	180	canceled 2010
MN	Mesaba Energy Project	Mesaba Energy Project	603	active
MN	Rosemount Project	Xcel Rosemount	550	canceled 2007
MN	New Ulm Power Plant	New Ulm Boiler #4	15	canceled 2011
MO	Norborne Baseload Plant	Associate Electric Cooperative's Norborne	660	canceled 2008
MO	Iatan 2	Iatan (KCP&L)	850	operating 2010
MO	Southwest Power Station Unit 2	Springfield	300	operating 2011
MO	University of Missouri-Columbia Power Plant	University of Missouri - Columbia	40	canceled 2008
MS	Belwood Coal-to-Liquids	Belwood/Natchez Coal-to-Liquids plant		upcoming
MS	Mississippi Gasification	Moss Point Gasification		uncertain
MS	Kemper Project	Mississippi Power Kemper IGCC	582	active
MS	Red Hills Power Project	Ackerman / Red Hills Mine		canceled 2010
MT	Highwood Generating Station	Highwood	250	canceled 2009
MT	Nelson Creek Project	Nelson Creek (aka Circle)	500	canceled 2007
MT	Roundup Coal-to-Liquids			canceled 2007
MT	Bechtel / Kennecot Project	Otter Creek	3000	canceled
MT	Thompson River Co-Gen
MT	Roundup Power Project	Roundup	750	canceled 2007
MT	Hardin Generating Station	Hardin Generating Plant	116	operating 2006
MT	Malmstrom Air Force Base Coal-to-Liquids	Malmstrom Air Force Base Coal-to-Liquids		canceled 2009
MT	Ambre Energy plant	Ambre Prep Plant		canceled 2010
MT	Broadview coal plant	Broadview	200	canceled 2008
MT	Crow Nation CFB	Crow Nation CFB	2000	canceled 2010
MT		Crow Nation CTG plant		canceled
MT	Many Stars Coal-to-Liquids	Many Stars CTL		upcoming
MT	Comanche Park Plant	uncertainstone / Comanche	200	canceled 2006
NC	Cliffside Plant	Cliffside	800	2012 startup
ND	South Heart Power Project	South Heart Coal	175	active
ND	Spiritwood Industrial Park	Spiritwood Station	99	progressing
ND	American Lignite Energy	American Lignite Co's Coal-to-Liquids plant	150	uncertain
ND	Gascoyne 175 Project	Gascoyne 175 Generating Station	175	canceled 2007
ND	Gascoyne 500 Project	Gascoyne 500 Generating Station	500	canceled 2008
ND	Milton Young 3	Milton Young 3	500	canceled 2008
NE	Whelan Energy Center Unit 2	Whelan Energy Center II	220	operating 2009
NE	Nebraska City Station Unit 2	OPPD's Nebraska City 2	660	operating 2009
NE	Nebraska City Station Unit 3			abandoned
NJ	PurGen One	PurGen	750	uncertain
NJ	West Deptford Project	West Deptford	650	canceled 2007
NM	Desert Rock	Desert Rock	1500	abandoned 2011
NM	Mustang Energy Project	Mustang	300	canceled 2006
NM	Cottonwood Energy Center			on hold
NV	Ely Energy Center, Phase I, Ely Energy Center, Phase II	Ely Energy Center	1500	canceled 2009
NV	Gerlach Plant	Granite Fox Power Project	1450	canceled 2006
NV	Toquop	Toquop Energy Project	750	canceled 2010
NV	White Pine Energy Station	White Pine Energy Station	1580	canceled 2009
NV	TS Power Plant	Newmont coal plant	210	operating 2008
NY	Huntley Generating Station	Huntley (NRG)	680	canceled 2007
NY	Scriba Coal Gasification Plant	Scriba Coal Gasification plant		canceled 2010
NY	Clean Coal Plant Project (Jamestown, New York)	BPU Jamestown plant	40	upcoming
NY	Scriba Coal Gasification Plant	DeWitt Coal-to-Methane Gasification Plant		canceled 2007
NY	Lackawanna Coal-to-Gas	Lackawanna CTG		canceled 2010
NY	Russell Station II	Russell Station II	300	canceled 2007
OH	American Municipal Power Generating Station	American Municipal Power (AMP) Generating Station	960	canceled 2009
OH	Ashtabula IGCC Generating Facility	Ashtabula IGCC Generating Facility	830	canceled 2006
OH	Dominion Energy	Dominion Conneaut	600	canceled
OH	First Energy/Consol IGCC			canceled
OH	Great Bend IGCC	Great Bend IGCC	600	canceled 2009
OH	Lima Energy	Lima Energy Station	600	canceled 2008
OH		Rentech Coal-to-Liquids plant		canceled 2010
OH	Atlantic Energy Ventures gasification plant	Irontron Energy Center	200	canceled 2010
OH	Lawrence Energy Center	Lawrence County Energy Center / Hanging Rock	850-1100	canceled
OH	Ohio River Clean Fuels	Ohio River Coal-to-Liquids plant	250	canceled 2011
OH	Haverhill Cogeneration Station			operating 2008
OK	AES Shady Point II	AES Shady Point II	630	canceled 2009
OK		Clean Global Energy UCG (Shady Point)	300
OK	Hugo 2	Hugo 2	750	canceled 2010
OK	Sallisaw Project	Sallisaw Electric Generating Plant	100	canceled 2007
OK	Red Rock Generating Facility	Red Rock Generating Facility	100	canceled 2007
OK	LS Power Sequoyah Plant			abandoned
OK	SynFuel Enid Project			canceled
OR	Lower Columbia Clean Energy Center	Lower Columbia Clean Energy Center	100	abandoned 2008
PA	Beech Hollow Energy Project	Beech Hollow	250	canceled 2010
PA	Enviropower Plant
PA	Good Spring Plant	Good Spring	150	active
PA	Greene Energy Resource Recovery Project	Greene County	580	active
PA	River Hill Power Project	River Hill Power	290	canceled 2010
PA	Gilberton Coal-to-Clean-Fuels and Power Project	Schuylkill	41	canceled 2008
PA	Seward Power Plant			operating 2004
PA	Sithe Shade Township Project	Sithe Global	300	canceled 2008
PA	Unnamed 1000 MW Project (Pennsylvania)
SC	Cross Generating Station Unit 3	Cross Generating Station	640	operating 2007
SC	Cross Generating Station Unit 4	Cross Generating Station	640	operating 2008
SC	Marion City Project	Marion City	500-1100	canceled 2008
SC	Pee Dee Generating Facility	Pee Dee Facility	1320	canceled 2009
SD		Hyperion Energy Center	200	active
SD	Big Stone II	Milbank / Big Stone City	500	canceled 2009
SD	NextGen Energy Facility	Walworth County / Selby	700	canceled 2009
TX		Babcock & Brown	800	uncertain
TX		ConocoPhillips Sweeny Refinery Gasification	683	upcoming
TX		Diamond Alternative Energy Gasification plant		canceled 2010
TX	Freeport Plant	Freeport Plant	400	progressing
TX	Oak Grove Plant	TXU Oak Grove	1720	operating 2010
TX	La Porte IGCC Plant	NRG S.R. Betron IGCC Facility	550	canceled 2009
TX	Las Brisas Energy Center	Las Brisas	1320	active
TX	Spruce Unit 2	Spruce	750	operating 2010
TX	Texas Clean Energy Project	Summit Power	400	active
TX	TXE Industrial Gasification Facility	Texas Energy Gasification		canceled 2009
TX	Twin Oaks Power Unit 3	Twin Oaks	600	canceled 2008
TX	Sandy Creek Plant	Sandy Creek	800	active
TX	White Stallion Energy Center	White Stallion Energy Center	1320	active
TX	Limestone 3	Limestone III	744	active
TX	Coleto Creek expansion	Coleto Creek Expansion	650	active
TX	Port Comfort Repowering Project	NuCoastal	303	active
TX	Nueces IGCC Plant	Nueces IGCC	600	canceled 2007
TX	Trailblazer Energy Center	Tenaska	600	active
TX	Big Brown 3	TXU Big Brown	858	canceled 2007
TX	Lake Creek 3	TXU Lake Creek 3	858	canceled 2007
TX	Martin Lake 4	TXU Martin Lake 4	858	canceled 2007
TX	Monticello 4	TXU Monticello 4	858	canceled 2007
TX	Morgan Creek 7	TXU Morgan Creek 7	858	canceled 2007
TX	Sandow Unit 5	TXU Sandow 5	600	operating 2009
TX	Tradinghouse 3 & 4	TXU Tradinghouse 3 & 4	1600	canceled 2007
TX	Valley 4	TXU Valley 4	858	canceled 2007
UT		Consolidated Energy	109	canceled 2009
UT	Sevier Plant	NEVCO (Sevier)	270	canceled 2010
UT	Green River Plant	Green River	500	canceled 2010
UT	Hunter 4	Hunter 4 Power Plant (PacifiCorp)	850	canceled 2007
UT	Intermountain Power Project Unit 3	Intermountain Power (IPP)	900	canceled 2009
UT	Bonanza Power Plant addition	Bonanza	110	canceled 2010
VA	Surry County Plant	Cypress Creek Power Station	1500	uncertain, temp. hold
VA	Wise County Plant	Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center	585	startup 2012
VA	LS Power Sussex proposal	LS Power, Sussex County	800	canceled 2007
WA	Composite Power Project	Composite Power	2500	canceled 2003
WA	Wallula Energy Resource Center	Wallula Energy Resource Center	915	canceled 2009
WA	Pacific Mountain Energy Center	Energy Northwest	783	canceled 2007
WI	E.J. Stoneman Expansion	Cassville	200	canceled 2007
WI	Nelson Dewey Generating Facility	Cassville/Nelson Dewey III	300	canceled 2008
WI	Oak Creek Unit 1	Oak Creek / Elm Road	615	operating 2010
WI	Oak Creek Unit 2	Oak Creek / Elm Road	615	operating 2011
WI	Weston Unit 4	Wausau / Weston 4	525	operating 2008
WV	Benwood Project	Benwood (Marshall County Industrial Park)		canceled 2008
WV	Western Greenbrier Co-Production Demonstration Project	Greenbrier County / Rainelle	75	canceled 2008
WV	Waste Management Logan County plant	Logan		canceled 2010
WV	Longview Plant	Longview / Monongalia County	695	operating 2011
WV	Mingo Project	Mingo County		canceled 2010
WV	TransGas Development Systems	Mingo County CTL Plant		active
WV	Mountaineer	New Haven (Mason County) / Mountaineer Plant	629	canceled 2008
WV	Upshur County Project	Upshur	450	canceled 2002
WY	Jim Bridger Unit 5	Jim Bridger	500	canceled 2007
WY	Energy Expediters			canceled
WY	Buffalo Energy Project	Buffalo Energy	1100	canceled 2008
WY	Gillette Coal-to-Liquids Plant	Rentech Inc.	104	canceled 2007
WY	Medicine Bow Plant	Medicine Bow	200	active
WY	Idaho Power Company Pulverized Coal Proposal			on hold
WY	Laramie County pilot plant	Gov. Freudenthal and Gov. Schwarzenegger initiative		canceled 2010
WY	University of Wyoming High Plains Gasification Plant			active
WY	Wygen Unit 2		90	operating 2008
WY	Wygen Unit 3	Wygen III	110	operating 2010
WY	Dry Fork Station	Basin / Dry Fork	385	active
WY	PacifiCorp Sweetwater Project			canceled 2007
WY	Two Elk Energy Park Unit 2	Two Elk 2	750	canceled 2010
WY	Two Elk Energy Park Unit 1	Two Elk	325	active
WY	Point of Rocks Project	PacifiCorp Point of Rocks	400	canceled 2008

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