AMERICAN FALLS
OperatingHydro power plant
- Capacity
- 92 MW
- Primary fuel
- Hydro
- County
- Power County
- Operator
- IDAHO POWER CO
- Status
- Operating
- Commissioned
- 1978
- EIA plant ID
- 809
- Generators
- 3
- Technology
- Conventional Hydroelectric
- Net generation (2024)
- 243 GWh
- Capacity factor (2024, EIA nameplate)
- 30%
- Data vintage
- EIA-860 2024 final; EIA-923 2022-2024 final
- Coordinates
- 42.7779, -112.8764
AMERICAN FALLS, a 92 MW Hydro power plant in Power County, Idaho. Operated by IDAHO POWER CO, commissioned 1978.
How AMERICAN FALLS compares
With 92 MW of capacity, AMERICAN FALLS ranks 14th among the 123 operating power plants Bywatts maps in Idaho and 6th of the 70 operating Hydro plants in the state. It accounts for about 3.7% of Idaho's operating Hydro capacity and 1.9% of all operating capacity in the state. Nationally it is the 191st-largest of the 1,243 operating Hydro plants in the database. Commissioned in 1978, it is older than 73% of the 121 operating Idaho plants with a recorded commissioning year. Its operator, IDAHO POWER CO, runs 20 operating plants in Idaho totaling 1,894 MW. It shares Power County with 3 other operating plants, including ROCKLAND WIND FARM and POWER COUNTY WIND PARK NORTH.
EIA-860 lists 3 generators at the site with 92 MW of nameplate capacity, all conventional hydroelectric technology. Net generation was 243 GWh in 2024 (a 30% capacity factor), up 16% from 2022.
Grid neighborhood
The nearest named substation is AMERICAN FALLS (230 kV), about 0.2 miles away; the closest transmission line found within 10 miles is a 138 kV line owned by IDAHO POWER CO, under 0.1 miles away. Another 4 operating power plants totaling 140 MW sit within 25 miles; the largest is ROCKLAND WIND FARM (79 MW, Wind).
Computed by Bywatts from HIFLD power plant, substation and transmission line records and EIA-860/923 survey data; distances are straight-line. Sources and methodology
Weather peril exposure
AMERICAN FALLS is a 92 MW hydro power plant in Power County, ID, operated by IDAHO POWER CO, commissioned in 1978. Power County carries moderate modeled catastrophe exposure in the FEMA National Risk Index, scoring 2.1 of 5 at the 28th national percentile. Wildfire is the leading peril, rated Relatively Moderate by FEMA at the 99th percentile.
The Bywatts loss layer is calibrated to solar PV hardware, so it is not applied to a hydro plant. The ratings below are the FEMA National Risk Index county hazard ratings for this location.
Power County hazard ratings
| Peril | FEMA rating | National percentile | Peril score | Events per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildfire | Relatively Moderate | 99th | 4.9 of 5 | 0.02 |
| Earthquake | Very Low | 84th | 4.3 of 5 | <0.01 |
| Lightning | Very Low | 62nd | 3.5 of 5 | 28.9 |
| Heat wave | Relatively Low | 50th | 3.0 of 5 | 2.4 |
| Winter weather | Relatively Moderate | 43rd | 2.7 of 5 | 15.6 |
| Strong wind | Very Low | 35th | 2.4 of 5 | 0.82 |
| Hail | Very Low | 30th | 2.2 of 5 | 0.42 |
| Ice storm | Very Low | 19th | 1.7 of 5 | 0.01 |
| Tornado | Very Low | 13th | 1.5 of 5 | 0.17 |
| Riverine flooding | Very Low | 6th | 1.2 of 5 | 0.82 |
Perils not assessed in Power County
These perils carry no usable National Risk Index figure for this county, so they are excluded from the scoring rather than scored zero. A zero would claim the peril was assessed and found benign.
| Peril | Why it is not scored |
|---|---|
| Hurricane | FEMA rating is "Not Applicable" for this county |
| Coastal flooding | FEMA rating is "Not Applicable" for this county |
Model hail, wind and flood exposure for Power County in the weather risk calculator
Ratings are the FEMA National Risk Index county hazard ratings; the peril score is a Bywatts transform of the FEMA national percentile. Full data sources and the solar vulnerability methodology are in the weather risk calculator.
Modeled estimate for screening and negotiation. Built from FEMA National Risk Index county hazard data and a solar vulnerability layer documented above. Not a quote, a binder, or actuarial advice, and not a substitute for a carrier's own model. Hazard data: FEMA National Risk Index December 2025, synced 2026-07-24. Resolution is county level, not site level.