BOSWELL ENERGY CENTER
OperatingCoal power plant
- Capacity
- 1,073 MW
- Primary fuel
- Coal
- County
- Itasca County
- Operator
- MINNESOTA POWER INC
- Status
- Operating
- Commissioned
- 1973
- EIA plant ID
- 1893
- Generators
- 3
- Technology
- Conventional Steam Coal
- Net generation (2024)
- 4,398 GWh
- Capacity factor (2024, EIA nameplate)
- 54%
- Data vintage
- EIA-860 2024 final; EIA-923 2022-2024 final
- Coordinates
- 47.2611, -93.6528
BOSWELL ENERGY CENTER, a 1,073 MW Coal power plant in Itasca County, Minnesota. Operated by MINNESOTA POWER INC, commissioned 1973.
How BOSWELL ENERGY CENTER compares
With 1,073 MW of capacity, BOSWELL ENERGY CENTER ranks 3rd among the 215 operating power plants Bywatts maps in Minnesota and 2nd of the 14 operating Coal plants in the state. It accounts for about 21% of Minnesota's operating Coal capacity and 6.6% of all operating capacity in the state. Nationally it is the 109th-largest of the 324 operating Coal plants in the database. Commissioned in 1973, it is older than 72% of the 200 operating Minnesota plants with a recorded commissioning year. Its operator, MINNESOTA POWER INC, runs 15 operating plants in Minnesota totaling 1,435 MW. It shares Itasca County with 2 other operating plants, RAPIDS ENERGY CENTER and PRAIRIE RIVER.
EIA-860 lists 3 generators at the site with 923 MW of nameplate capacity, all conventional steam coal technology (this page's HIFLD capacity figure is 1,073 MW). Net generation was 4,398 GWh in 2024 (a 54% capacity factor), down 14% from 2022. Its generators came online between 1973 and 1980.
Grid neighborhood
The closest transmission line found within 10 miles is a 230 kV line owned by MINNESOTA POWER INC, under 0.1 miles away. Another 2 operating power plants totaling 29 MW sit within 25 miles; the largest is RAPIDS ENERGY CENTER (28 MW, Biomass).
Computed by Bywatts from HIFLD power plant and transmission line records and EIA-860/923 survey data; distances are straight-line. Sources and methodology
Weather peril exposure
BOSWELL ENERGY CENTER is a 1,073 MW coal power plant in Itasca County, MN, operated by MINNESOTA POWER INC, commissioned in 1973. Itasca County carries moderate modeled catastrophe exposure in the FEMA National Risk Index, scoring 2.2 of 5 at the 30th national percentile. Riverine flooding is the leading peril, rated Relatively Moderate by FEMA at the 78th 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.
Itasca County hazard ratings
| Peril | FEMA rating | National percentile | Peril score | Events per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riverine flooding | Relatively Moderate | 78th | 4.1 of 5 | 0.39 |
| Heat wave | Relatively Moderate | 74th | 4.0 of 5 | 0.83 |
| Winter weather | Relatively Low | 49th | 3.0 of 5 | 18.3 |
| Hail | Relatively Low | 47th | 2.9 of 5 | 1.5 |
| Wildfire | Very Low | 33rd | 2.3 of 5 | <0.01 |
| Lightning | Relatively Moderate | 30th | 2.2 of 5 | 28.4 |
| Tornado | Relatively Low | 23rd | 1.9 of 5 | 0.37 |
| Ice storm | Very Low | 17th | 1.7 of 5 | 0.06 |
| Strong wind | Relatively High | 3rd | 1.1 of 5 | 1.0 |
| Earthquake | Very Low | 0th | 1.0 of 5 | <0.01 |
Perils not assessed in Itasca 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 Itasca 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.