Watts Bar Hydro
Rhea County, Tennessee · EIA plant ID 3420 · Operator: Tennessee Valley Authority
Nameplate175MWSummer 196 MW
Generators5in service
Net generation865GWh12 mo to Dec 2025
Capacity factor50%hydro units, summer MW
Heat rate—thermal plants only
First online1942
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 | 606.1 | 39.5% | — |
| 2002 | 457.6 | 29.1% | — |
| 2003 | 815.2 | 50.2% | — |
| 2004 | 1,024 | 57.1% | — |
| 2005 | 906.5 | 55.1% | — |
| 2006 | 763 | 46.1% | — |
| 2007 | 494 | 29.4% | — |
| 2008 | 535.2 | 31.7% | — |
| 2009 | 961.6 | 57.1% | — |
| 2010 | 775.7 | 45.7% | — |
| 2011 | 997.6 | 58.7% | — |
| 2012 | 850.6 | 49.9% | — |
| 2013 | 1,224.9 | 72.1% | — |
| 2014 | 841.9 | 49.6% | — |
| 2015 | 974.3 | 56.6% | — |
| 2016 | 705.8 | 40.9% | — |
| 2017 | 890.2 | 51.7% | — |
| 2018 | 1,085.9 | 63.1% | — |
| 2019 | 1,132.6 | 65.8% | — |
| 2020 | 1,527.6 | 88.5% | — |
| 2021 | 1,055.6 | 61.4% | — |
| 2022 | 897.7 | 52.2% | — |
| 2023 | 812.4 | 47.2% | — |
| 2024 | 895.6 | 51.9% | — |
| 2025 | 865.4 | 50.3% | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HY1 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 41 | 39.3 | Jul 1942 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| HY2 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 33.4 | 39.3 | Apr 1942 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| HY3 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 33.4 | 39.3 | Mar 1942 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| HY4 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 33.4 | 39.2 | Apr 1944 | Operating | — | coming soon |
| HY5 | Conventional Hydroelectric | HY | 33.4 | 39.3 | Mar 1944 | Operating | — | coming soon |
Owner / operator
Operator: Tennessee Valley Authority. Ownership shares by in-service nameplate MW (EIA-860 Schedule 4; units not listed there are wholly owned by the operator).
| Tennessee Valley Authority | 100.0% | 175 MW |
Nearby plants
Within 80 km.
| Watts Bar Nuclear Plant | 2,540 MW | 2 km |
| DMAT Denso - SEAT Solar Holdings, LLC | 5 MW | 20 km |
| Bowater Newsprint Calhoun Operation | retired | 36 km |
| Kingston | 1,700 MW | 39.3 km |
| Primient Loudon Plant | 61 MW | 44 km |
| Vonore Battery Energy Storage System | — | 46.2 km |