Cheoah
Hydro power plant · Graham County, North Carolina
Details
- Primary fuel
- Hydro
- Technology
- Conventional Hydroelectric
- Operator
- Brookfield Smoky Mountain Hydropower LP
- County
- Graham County
- Generating units
- 5
- Share of state capacity
- 0.35%
- Rank among hydro plants in North Carolina
- #5 of 38
- EIA plant code
- 54899
Generating units
| Unit | Technology | Nameplate | Summer | Online | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 30 MW | 31 MW | 1949 | Operating |
| 1A | Conventional Hydroelectric | 28 MW | 28 MW | 2012 | Operating |
| 2A | Conventional Hydroelectric | 28 MW | 28 MW | 2012 | Operating |
| 3A | Conventional Hydroelectric | 28 MW | 28 MW | 2013 | Operating |
| 4A | Conventional Hydroelectric | 28 MW | 28 MW | 2012 | 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 North Carolina
| W H Weatherspoon | Other | 163 MW |
| American Beech Solar LLC | Solar | 140 MW |
| Albemarle Beach Solar | Solar | 130 MW |
| Oak Solar | Solar | 120 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 140 MW solar plant and a 140 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 North Carolina power plants · What North Carolina actually generates