Nameplate capacity
18 MW
Rank in Iowa
#139
of 305 plants
In service since
1946
June 1946
Details
- Primary fuel
- Natural gas
- Technology
- Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine
- Operator
- City of Vinton - (IA)
- County
- Benton County
- Generating units
- 7
- Share of state capacity
- 0.07%
- Rank among natural gas plants in Iowa
- #27 of 42
- EIA plant code
- 1194
Generating units
| Unit | Technology | Nameplate | Summer | Online | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | 5.6 MW | 5.6 MW | 1973 | Operating |
| 7 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | 3.7 MW | 3.7 MW | 1967 | Operating |
| 9 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | 3.0 MW | 3.0 MW | 1992 | Operating |
| 6 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | 2.5 MW | 2.5 MW | 1961 | Operating |
| 1 | Natural Gas Internal Combustion Engine | 1.3 MW | 1.3 MW | 1955 | Operating |
| 10 | Petroleum Liquids | 0.8 MW | 0.6 MW | 2009 | Operating |
| 5 | Petroleum Liquids | 0.6 MW | 0.5 MW | 1946 | Out of service and NOT expected to return to service in next calendar year |
Nameplate is the maximum rated output; summer capacity is what the unit can reliably deliver on a hot day, which is typically lower.
Similarly sized plants in Iowa
| Lake Mills | Other | 18 MW |
| Winterset | Natural gas | 18 MW |
| Algona | Other | 16 MW |
| Alliant SBD 9106 Rockwell CR | Other | 16 MW |
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 18 MW solar plant and a 18 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 Iowa power plants · What Iowa actually generates