LAWRENCE ENERGY CENTER
OperatingCoal power plant
- Capacity
- 566 MW
- Primary fuel
- Coal
- County
- Douglas County
- Operator
- WESTAR ENERGY INC
- Status
- Operating
- Commissioned
- 1960
- EIA plant ID
- 1250
- Generators
- 2
- Technology
- Conventional Steam Coal
- Net generation (2024)
- 1,177 GWh
- Capacity factor (2024, EIA nameplate)
- 26%
- Data vintage
- EIA-860 2024 final; EIA-923 2022-2024 final
- Coordinates
- 39.0084, -95.2694
LAWRENCE ENERGY CENTER, a 566 MW Coal power plant in Douglas County, Kansas. Operated by WESTAR ENERGY INC, commissioned 1960.
How LAWRENCE ENERGY CENTER compares
With 566 MW of capacity, LAWRENCE ENERGY CENTER ranks 5th among the 115 operating power plants Bywatts maps in Kansas and 3rd of the 7 operating Coal plants in the state. It accounts for about 10% of Kansas's operating Coal capacity and 4.1% of all operating capacity in the state. Nationally it is the 154th-largest of the 324 operating Coal plants in the database. Commissioned in 1960, it is older than 73% of the 113 operating Kansas plants with a recorded commissioning year. Its operator, WESTAR ENERGY INC, runs 6 operating plants in Kansas totaling 4,079 MW. It shares Douglas County with 3 other operating plants, including KANSAS RIVER PROJECT and BALDWIN CITY PLANT NO 2.
EIA-860 lists 2 generators at the site with 517 MW of nameplate capacity, all conventional steam coal technology. Net generation was 1,177 GWh in 2024 (a 26% capacity factor), down 41% from 2022. Its generators came online between 1960 and 1971.
Grid neighborhood
The closest transmission line found within 10 miles is a 115 kV line owned by WESTAR ENERGY INC, under 0.1 miles away. Another 5 operating power plants totaling 423 MW sit within 25 miles; the largest is WEST GARDNER (365 MW, Natural Gas). Within 50 miles are 3 mapped data centers; the nearest is Level(3) Kansas City in Kansas City, about 37.4 miles away.
Computed by Bywatts from HIFLD power plant and transmission line records, EIA-860/923 survey data and PeeringDB data center locations; distances are straight-line. Sources and methodology
Weather peril exposure
LAWRENCE ENERGY CENTER is a 566 MW coal power plant in Douglas County, KS, operated by WESTAR ENERGY INC, commissioned in 1960. Douglas County carries high modeled catastrophe exposure in the FEMA National Risk Index, scoring 4.2 of 5 at the 79th national percentile. Heat wave is the leading peril, rated Relatively Low by FEMA at the 90th percentile.
The Bywatts loss layer is calibrated to solar PV hardware, so it is not applied to a coal plant. The ratings below are the FEMA National Risk Index county hazard ratings for this location.
Douglas County hazard ratings
| Peril | FEMA rating | National percentile | Peril score | Events per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heat wave | Relatively Low | 90th | 4.6 of 5 | 14.4 |
| Hail | Relatively Moderate | 82nd | 4.3 of 5 | 9.8 |
| Winter weather | Very High | 82nd | 4.3 of 5 | 11.9 |
| Tornado | Relatively High | 73rd | 3.9 of 5 | 0.34 |
| Strong wind | Relatively High | 68th | 3.7 of 5 | 7.3 |
| Ice storm | Relatively High | 51st | 3.0 of 5 | 1.1 |
| Lightning | Relatively High | 46th | 2.8 of 5 | 51.3 |
| Wildfire | Very Low | 36th | 2.5 of 5 | <0.01 |
| Riverine flooding | Relatively Low | 30th | 2.2 of 5 | 2.0 |
| Earthquake | Very Low | 24th | 2.0 of 5 | <0.01 |
Perils not assessed in Douglas 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 "No Rating" for this county |
| Coastal flooding | FEMA rating is "Not Applicable" for this county |
Model hail, wind and flood exposure for Douglas 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.