Black Dog
Natural gas power plant in Dakota County, Minnesota. 562.8 MW of nameplate capacity across 3 generators, operated by Northern States Power Co - Minnesota.
Also known as Black Dog Plant · EIA plant 1904
Analyst: free account, 1 question a day.
Key facts
- Capacity
- 562.8 MWNameplate
- Generators
- 3 operatingEIA-860M, August 2026
- Operating since
- October 1954First generator online
- Operator
- Northern States Power Co - MinnesotaEIA operator ID 13781
- Grid
- MISOBalancing authority MISO
- Price nodes
- 1 MISO nodeResource nodes with prices
- Location
- Dakota County, MN44.8108, −93.2501
- EIA plant ID
- 1904EIA plant page
Data as of EIA-860M August 2026 (published 2026-09-24). Capacity is nameplate, not live output.
How much power Black Dog produces
Free · EIA-923Net generation, 2025
Not reported
Not reported MWh, final. 0 of 12 months reported
Capacity factor, 2025
Not reported
2024: Not reported
January to July 2026
Not reported
Provisional. 0 of 7 months reported
Range, 2016 to 2021
0.7–1.9
TWh a year. Low 2017, high 2021
| Year | Net generation, MWh | Capacity factor | Months reported |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 1,480,298 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2001 | 1,051,380 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2002 | 1,662,585 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2003 | 1,805,819 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2004 | 2,077,342 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2005 | 2,221,258 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2006 | 2,089,284 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2007 | 2,149,530 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2008 | 91,442 | Not reported | 1 of 12 |
| 2009 | 1,735,283 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2010 | 1,601,762 | 29.6% | 12 of 12 |
| 2011 | 1,518,995 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2012 | 1,390,349 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2013 | 1,635,476 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2014 | 1,842,094 | Not reported | 12 of 12 |
| 2015 | Not reported | Not reported | 0 of 12 |
| 2016 | 1,143,982 | 40.1% | 12 of 12 |
| 2017 | 689,797 | 24.2% | 12 of 12 |
| 2018 | Not reported | Not reported | 0 of 12 |
| 2019 | 1,780,228 | 36.1% | 12 of 12 |
| 2020 | Not reported | Not reported | 0 of 12 |
| 2021 | 1,910,457 | 38.8% | 12 of 12 |
| 2022 | Not reported | Not reported | 0 of 12 |
| 2023 | Not reported | Not reported | 0 of 12 |
| 2024 | Not reported | Not reported | 0 of 12 |
| 2025 | Not reported | Not reported | 0 of 12 |
| 2026 (provisional, partial year) | Not reported | Not reported | 0 of 7 |
* 2026 covers January to July and is provisional. Capacity factor is net generation divided by nameplate capacity times the hours of each reported month.
Power prices and basis
Free account · MISOEmissions
Free · EPA CAMPDCO₂, 2025
477,144
US short tons. 2024: 1.15M
SO₂, 2025
2
US short tons
NOx, 2025
100
US short tons
2 of 2 EPA units reported CO₂ in 2025 (3, 4, 5, 6), matched to EIA plant 1904 through the EPA–EIA crosswalk.
Water use
Free · EIA-923 cooling, USGSWithdrawal, 2024
37,366
million gallons
Consumption, 2024
0
million gallons
Source
Minnesota River
Surface, Fresh. Once-through with cooling pond
Watershed stress
Low · 0.222
USGS SUI, HUC12 Black Dog Lake-Minnesota River
12 of 12 cooling months report withdrawal. SUI of the source river HUC12 within 3 km. Cooling-pond plants report water circulated through the pond as withdrawal, so withdrawal is far above consumption. Blank volumes are unreported, not zero.
Generators
Free · EIA-860M| Generator | Technology | Nameplate MW | Online since |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | 136.9 | October 1954 |
| 5 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | 187.9 | June 2002 |
| 6-1 | Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine | 238.0 | April 2018 |
Ownership and offtake
ProOwnership and offtake are part of Pro
Owners and their shares, parent companies, and power purchase agreements with their buyers. EIA-860M lists Northern States Power Co - Minnesota as the operator, which is not always the owner.
Modeled data
ProPro adds modeled values for this plant. Everything above stays free.
Generation potential vs reported
Monthly potential at seasonal net capability, next to EIA-923 output. Shows how much of the plant's capability was used.
300 analyst questions a month, plus MCP
Query Black Dog and 14,224 other projects from Claude or your own tools. Free accounts get 1 question a day.
Power plants near Black Dog
More plants operated by Northern States Power Co - Minnesota
Questions about Black Dog
Where is Black Dog?
Black Dog is in Dakota County, Minnesota, at 44.8108, −93.2501. It is in the Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.. balancing area (MISO).
Who operates Black Dog?
EIA-860M for August 2026 lists Northern States Power Co - Minnesota as the operator (EIA operator ID 13781). The operator is not always the owner.
When did Black Dog start operating?
Its first generator began operating in October 1954, according to EIA-860M.
Does InfraMap have power prices for Black Dog?
Yes. InfraMap has MISO day-ahead and real-time prices at 1 price node linked to Black Dog, with the hub price and node-to-hub basis. Prices are free with an InfraMap account; pricing node names are part of InfraMap Pro.
Sources
- EIA-860 2025 (final) and EIA-860M August 2026: plant, generators, capacity, operator and location
- EIA-923 monthly net generation, 2000 to July 2026 (2026 provisional)
- EPA CAMPD annual emissions through the EPA–EIA crosswalk, 1995 to 2025
- MISO day-ahead and real-time prices; node and hub assignments as of 2026-10-05
- EIA-923 cooling water 2024 and the USGS surface water supply and use index, Water years 2010-2020 (Oct 2009 to Sep 2020), mean of monthly values
- Plant names from OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL)
Page updated 2026-10-04 from the InfraMap data build. Methodology · Data sources · EIA plant page