Big Bend Dam
Buffalo County, South Dakota · EIA plant ID 3375 · Operator: USCE-Missouri River District
Nameplate538MWSummer 520 MW
Generators8in service
Net generation746GWh12 mo to Dec 2025
Capacity factor16%hydro units, summer MW
Heat rate—thermal plants only
First online1964
Monthly net generation
EIA-923, all units at the plant. Net of station use; storage can go negative.
FinalPreliminary
Capacity factor by year
Net MWh ÷ (summer MW × hours), hydro units. Each year uses that year's EIA-860 ratings; the hollow dot is the latest 12 months.
Heat rate by year
Electric fuel MMBtu × 1000 ÷ net MWh (Btu/kWh, HHV), fossil units only; CT + CA counted as one combined-cycle block.
Heat rate applies to fuel-burning (thermal) units only.
Annual data table
| Year | Net GWh | Capacity factor | Heat rate (Btu/kWh) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 609.8 | 13.7% | — |
| 2002 | 816.8 | 18.3% | — |
| 2003 | 820.5 | 18.0% | — |
| 2004 | 700.5 | 15.3% | — |
| 2005 | 598.6 | 13.1% | — |
| 2006 | 666.9 | 14.6% | — |
| 2007 | 467.4 | 11.4% | — |
| 2008 | 467 | 11.4% | — |
| 2009 | 666.5 | 14.6% | — |
| 2010 | 939.6 | 20.6% | — |
| 2011 | 1,599.7 | 35.1% | — |
| 2012 | 1,106.2 | 24.2% | — |
| 2013 | 742.8 | 16.3% | — |
| 2014 | 1,032.5 | 22.7% | — |
| 2015 | 843.6 | 18.5% | — |
| 2016 | 726.3 | 15.9% | — |
| 2017 | 954.4 | 20.9% | — |
| 2018 | 1,193.2 | 26.2% | — |
| 2019 | 1,525.1 | 33.5% | — |
| 2020 | 1,022.1 | 22.4% | — |
| 2021 | 887.8 | 19.5% | — |
| 2022 | 782.9 | 17.2% | — |
| 2023 | 770.5 | 16.9% | — |
| 2024 | 813 | 17.8% | — |
| 2025 | 745.8 | 16.4% | — |
Generators
EIA-860 (annual) with EIA-860M updates through Sep 2026. EIA-923 reports generation by plant, prime mover and fuel, not by unit, so unit-level output isn't shown.
| Gen ID | Technology | Prime mover | Nameplate MW | Summer MW | Online | Status | Planned retirement | OEM / model |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 67.3 | 65 | Sep 1964 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| 2 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 67.3 | 65 | Nov 1964 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| 3 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 67.2 | 65 | Feb 1965 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| 4 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 67.3 | 65 | May 1965 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| 5 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 67.3 | 65 | Sep 1965 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| 6 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 67.3 | 65 | Dec 1965 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| 7 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 67.3 | 65 | May 1966 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| 8 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 67.3 | 65 | Jul 1966 | Operating | — | coming soon |
Owner / operator
Operator: USCE-Missouri River District. Ownership shares by in-service nameplate MW (EIA-860 Schedule 4; units not listed there are wholly owned by the operator).
| USCE-Missouri River District | 100.0% | 538 MW |
Nearby plants
Within 80 km.
| Chamberlain Wind Project | retired | 26.4 km |
| North Bend Wind Project, LLC | 200 MW | 41.4 km |
| Triple H Wind Project | 250 MW | 42.2 km |
| Rolling Thunder Wind Farm Hybrid | 26 MW | 54.8 km |
| Brule County Wind | 20 MW | 55.2 km |
| Prairie Winds SD1 | 162 MW | 55.4 km |