Raccoon Mountain
Raccoon Mountain is a pumped-storage hydro plant in Hamilton County, Tennessee, operated by Tennessee Valley Authority. Among the 33 pumped-storage plants in the country it is the third-largest. It ranks fifth by nameplate capacity among Tennessee’s 99 power plants.
Nameplate capacity, 2025
1,714 MW
1,616 MW net summer capacity
4 operable units
- Pumped-storage hydro1,714 MW100%
Unit by unit, 1978 to 2025
operating in 2025bar height follows unit size
Unit 2 Pumped-storage hydro, 428 MW, 1978
Unit 1 Pumped-storage hydro, 428 MW, 1979
Unit 3 Pumped-storage hydro, 428 MW, 1979
Unit 4 Pumped-storage hydro, 428 MW, 1979
Among Tennessee’s plants
Largest plants in the state by nameplate capacity, with the plants ranked next to this one.
- 1Cumberland (TN)2,600 MW
- 2Watts Bar Nuclear Plant2,540 MW
- 3Sequoyah2,441 MW
- 4Gallatin (TN)1,918 MW
- 5Raccoon Mountainthis plant
- 6Kingston1,700 MW
- 7Johnsonville1,676 MW
Other rankings
- All US power plants
- 111th of 14,286
- Plants in the Tennessee Valley Authority balancing area
- 7th of 152
- Plants run by Tennessee Valley Authority
- 7th of 53
- Biggest single unit, among Tennessee’s plants
- 5th of 99
Operable units
| Unit | Technology | Nameplate | Summer | Online | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Pumped-storage hydro | 428 MW | 404 MW | 1978 | Operating |
| 1 | Pumped-storage hydro | 428 MW | 405 MW | 1979 | Operating |
| 3 | Pumped-storage hydro | 428 MW | 404 MW | 1979 | Operating |
| 4 | Pumped-storage hydro | 428 MW | 404 MW | 1979 | Operating |
Grid and site
- Balancing area
- Tennessee Valley Authority
- Reliability region
- SERC Reliability Corporation
- Highest grid connection voltage
- 161 kV
- Water source
- Tennessee River Nickajack Rese
- Nearest town on record
- Chattanooga
- Operator type
- Utility
- Coordinates
- 35.056°N, 85.388°W
Closest plants
| Plant | Runs on | Capacity | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chickamauga | Hydroelectric | 160 MW | 9.5 mi east |
| Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Solar | Solar | 2.5 MW | 10.4 mi east |
| Nickajack | Hydroelectric | 104 MW | 13.8 mi west |
| Volkswagen Solar System | Solar | 7.6 MW | 15.0 mi east |
| Sequoyah | Nuclear | 2,441 MW | 20.5 mi northeast |
| SR Marion, LLC | Solar | 1.3 MW | 23.1 mi north |
| Whitfield Cooper | Solar | 1.1 MW | 26.1 mi east |
| Dalton 2 | Solar | 6.5 MW | 34.8 mi southeast |