Black Dog
Natural gas power plant · Dakota County, Minnesota
Nameplate capacity
563 MW
Rank in Minnesota
#9
of 804 plants
In service since
1954
October 1954
Details
- Primary fuel
- Natural gas
- Technology
- Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine
- Operator
- Northern States Power Co - Minnesota
- County
- Dakota County
- Generating units
- 3
- Share of state capacity
- 2.83%
- Rank among natural gas plants in Minnesota
- #4 of 36
- EIA plant code
- 1904
Generating units
| Unit | Technology | Nameplate | Summer | Online | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6-1 | Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine | 238 MW | 209 MW | 2018 | Operating |
| 5 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | 188 MW | 165 MW | 2002 | Operating |
| 2 | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | 137 MW | 117 MW | 1954 | Operating |
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 Minnesota
| Allen S King | Coal | 598 MW |
| Riverside (MN) | Natural gas | 586 MW |
| Lakefield Junction | Natural gas | 538 MW |
| Pleasant Valley (MN) | Natural gas | 468 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 563 MW solar plant and a 563 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 Minnesota power plants · What Minnesota actually generates