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Watson Cogeneration

Natural gas power plant · Los Angeles County, California

Nameplate capacity
405 MW
Rank in California
#51
of 1,897 plants
In service since
1987
December 1987

Details

Primary fuel
Natural gas
Technology
Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle
Operator
ARCO Products Co-Watson
County
Los Angeles County
Generating units
6
Share of state capacity
0.38%
Rank among natural gas plants in California
#32 of 309
EIA plant code
50216

Generating units

Individual generating units at Watson Cogeneration
UnitTechnologyNameplateSummerOnlineStatus
GN91Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle82 MW82 MW1988Operating
GN92Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle82 MW82 MW1988Operating
GN93Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle82 MW82 MW1988Operating
GN94Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle82 MW82 MW1987Operating
GN95Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle39 MW35 MW1988Operating
GN96Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle39 MW35 MW1987Operating

Nameplate is the maximum rated output; summer capacity is what the unit can reliably deliver on a hot day, which is typically lower.

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About this data

From EIA’s inventory of operable generators, May 2026 release. Capacity is nameplate — the maximum rated output of the equipment, not what the plant actually generates over a year, which depends on how often it runs. A 405 MW solar plant and a 405 MW nuclear plant have the same entry here and produce very different amounts of electricity.

“In service since” is the earliest in-service date among the units still listed, so a site rebuilt around newer equipment can read as younger than the site itself. All California power plants · What California actually generates