Gaston Shoals
Hydro power plant · Cherokee County, South Carolina
Details
- Primary fuel
- Hydro
- Technology
- Conventional Hydroelectric
- Operator
- Northbrook Carolina Hydro II, LLC
- County
- Cherokee County
- Generating units
- 3
- Share of state capacity
- 0.02%
- Rank among hydro plants in South Carolina
- #20 of 32
- EIA plant code
- 3258
Generating units
| Unit | Technology | Nameplate | Summer | Online | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 2.5 MW | 2.5 MW | 1927 | Operating |
| 4 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 1.4 MW | 2.0 MW | 2008 | Operating |
| 5 | Conventional Hydroelectric | 1.4 MW | 2.0 MW | 2008 | 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 South Carolina
| Barnwell Solar | Solar | 5.4 MW |
| Pacolet Diesel Generation Facility | Other | 5.4 MW |
| Spartanburg Water System | Other | 5.3 MW |
| Freedom Solar | Solar | 5.0 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 5.3 MW solar plant and a 5.3 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 South Carolina power plants · What South Carolina actually generates