El Vado Dam
Rio Arriba County, New Mexico · EIA plant ID 7593 · Operator: Los Alamos County
Nameplate8MWSummer 8 MW
Generators1in service
Net generation4GWh12 mo to Dec 2025
Capacity factor6%hydro units, summer MW
Heat rate—thermal plants only
First online1988
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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 32.9 | 46.9% | — |
| 2003 | 32.9 | 46.9% | — |
| 2004 | 24.9 | 35.5% | — |
| 2005 | 21.7 | 30.9% | — |
| 2006 | 25.9 | 37.0% | — |
| 2007 | 24.5 | 34.9% | — |
| 2008 | 43.2 | 61.5% | — |
| 2009 | 37.3 | 53.3% | — |
| 2010 | 35.3 | 50.4% | — |
| 2011 | 32.5 | 46.4% | — |
| 2012 | 27.2 | 38.7% | — |
| 2013 | 14.4 | 20.6% | — |
| 2014 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| 2015 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| 2016 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| 2017 | 18.2 | 26.0% | — |
| 2018 | 1.6 | 2.3% | — |
| 2019 | 33.1 | 47.2% | — |
| 2020 | 13.9 | 19.9% | — |
| 2021 | 8.3 | 11.8% | — |
| 2022 | 3.1 | 4.4% | — |
| 2023 | 1.5 | 2.2% | — |
| 2024 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| 2025 | 4.4 | 6.2% | — |
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 | 8 | 8 | May 1988 | Operating | — | coming soon |
Owner / operator
Operator: Los Alamos County. Ownership shares by in-service nameplate MW (EIA-860 Schedule 4; units not listed there are wholly owned by the operator).
| Los Alamos County | 100.0% | 8 MW |
Nearby plants
Within 80 km.
| Abiquiu Dam | 16 MW | 48 km |
| Syncarpha El Rito | 2 MW | 56.5 km |
| Jicarilla Solar 1 LLC | 70 MW | 57.6 km |
| Jicarilla Solar 2 | 50 MW | 63.8 km |
| Shallow Basket | 190 MW | 64.1 km |
| Cuba 2.5ac, LLC | 3 MW | 66.8 km |