Walter Scott Jr Energy Center
Walter Scott Jr Energy Center is a coal plant in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, operated by MidAmerican Energy Co. No other power plant in Iowa has more nameplate capacity; the state has 306 in all. Ownership is shared by 15 organizations; the largest stake, 68%, is held by MidAmerican Energy Co. Its biggest unit, rated at 922 MW, is the largest single generator in Iowa.
Nameplate capacity, 2025
1,648 MW
1,512 MW net summer capacity
2 operable units
- Coal steam1,648 MW100%
Unit by unit, 1954 to 2025
operating in 2025retiredbar height follows unit size
Among Iowa’s plants
Largest plants in the state by nameplate capacity, with the plants ranked next to this one.
- 1Walter Scott Jr Energy Centerthis plant
- 2Louisa812 MW
- 3Ottumwa726 MW
Other rankings
- All US power plants
- 124th of 14,286
- US coal plants
- 39th of 195
- Coal plants in Iowa
- 1st of 8
- Plants in the MISO (Midcontinent) balancing area
- 17th of 2,383
- Plants run by MidAmerican Energy Co
- 1st of 57
Operable units
By the year its oldest working unit started, it is the third-oldest of Iowa’s 8 coal plants.
| Unit | Technology | Nameplate | Summer | Online | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Coal steam | 726 MW | 706 MW | 1978 | Operating |
| 4 | Coal steam | 922 MW | 806 MW | 2007 | Operating |
Retired units
Retired capacity here totals 131 MW, mostly coal units.
| Unit | Technology | Nameplate | In service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coal steam | 49 MW | 1954–2015 |
| 2 | Coal steam | 81.6 MW | 1958–2015 |
Who owns it
Shares are weighted by the nameplate capacity of each unit an owner holds.
| Owner | Share of capacity |
|---|---|
| MidAmerican Energy Co | 68.2% |
| Central Iowa Power Cooperative | 10.4% |
| Lincoln Electric System | 7.1% |
| Corn Belt Power Coop | 4.8% |
| Municipal Energy Agency of NE | 3.9% |
| Cedar Falls Utilities | 2.6% |
| Atlantic Municipal Utilities (IA) | 1.1% |
| City of Spencer (IA) | 0.6% |
| City of New Hampton (IA) | 0.3% |
| Eldridge City Utilities | 0.3% |
| Town of Montezuma (IN) | 0.2% |
| Waverly Municipal Elec Utility (IA) | 0.2% |
| City of Alta (IA) | 0.1% |
| City of Sumner (IA) | 0.1% |
| City of West Bend (IA) | 0.1% |
Grid and site
- Balancing area
- MISO (Midcontinent)
- Reliability region
- Midwest Reliability Organization
- Highest grid connection voltage
- 345 kV
- Water source
- Missouri River, Wells
- Nearest town on record
- Council Bluffs
- Operator type
- Utility
- Coordinates
- 41.180°N, 95.841°W
Closest plants
| Plant | Runs on | Capacity | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missouri River Wastewater Treatment | Biomass and waste | 3 MW | 4.9 mi west |
| Jones Street | Oil and petroleum | 130 MW | 6.5 mi northwest |
| Sarpy County | Natural gas | 338 MW | 6.8 mi west |
| Papillion Creek Wastewater | Natural gas | 1.5 MW | 7.3 mi south |
| North Omaha | Coal | 645 MW | 11.6 mi northwest |
| Standing Bear Lake | Natural gas | 163 MW | 16.2 mi northwest |
| Cass County | Natural gas | 345 MW | 17.3 mi south |
| Turtle Creek | Natural gas | 528 MW | 18.1 mi west |