NEW ULM
OperatingNatural Gas power plant
- Capacity
- 79 MW
- Primary fuel
- Natural Gas
- County
- Brown County
- Operator
- NEW ULM PUBLIC UTILITIES COMM
- Status
- Operating
- Commissioned
- 1957
- EIA plant ID
- 2001
- Generators
- 5
- Net generation (2024)
- 1.9 GWh
- Capacity factor (2024, EIA nameplate)
- 0.3%
- Data vintage
- EIA-860 2024 final; EIA-923 2022-2024 final
- Coordinates
- 44.3157, -94.4578
NEW ULM, a 79 MW Natural Gas power plant in Brown County, Minnesota. Operated by NEW ULM PUBLIC UTILITIES COMM, commissioned 1957.
How NEW ULM compares
With 79 MW of capacity, NEW ULM ranks 38th among the 215 operating power plants Bywatts maps in Minnesota and 14th of the 26 operating Natural Gas plants in the state. It accounts for about 1.5% of Minnesota's operating Natural Gas capacity and 0.5% of all operating capacity in the state. Nationally it is the 732nd-largest of the 1,185 operating Natural Gas plants in the database. Commissioned in 1957, it is older than 78% of the 200 operating Minnesota plants with a recorded commissioning year. It shares Brown County with 2 other operating plants, SLEEPY EYE and SPRINGFIELD.
Under the same EIA plant code, EIA-860 lists 5 generators at the site with 79 MW of nameplate capacity. Net generation was 1.9 GWh in 2024 (a 0.3% capacity factor). Its generators came online between 1957 and 2001.
Grid neighborhood
The closest transmission line found within 10 miles is a 115 kV line owned by NORTHERN STATES POWER CO - MINNESOTA, about 1.3 miles away. Another 10 operating power plants totaling 618 MW sit within 25 miles; the largest is MANKATO ENERGY CENTER (530 MW, Natural Gas).
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
NEW ULM is a 79 MW natural gas power plant in Brown County, MN, operated by NEW ULM PUBLIC UTILITIES COMM, commissioned in 1957. Brown County carries elevated modeled catastrophe exposure in the FEMA National Risk Index, scoring 3.0 of 5 at the 51st national percentile. Winter weather is the leading peril, rated Relatively Moderate by FEMA at the 94th percentile.
The Bywatts loss layer is calibrated to solar PV hardware, so it is not applied to a natural gas plant. The ratings below are the FEMA National Risk Index county hazard ratings for this location.
Brown County hazard ratings
| Peril | FEMA rating | National percentile | Peril score | Events per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter weather | Relatively Moderate | 94th | 4.7 of 5 | 21.6 |
| Heat wave | Relatively Low | 92nd | 4.7 of 5 | 5.3 |
| Strong wind | Relatively Moderate | 92nd | 4.7 of 5 | 3.4 |
| Tornado | Relatively Low | 79th | 4.2 of 5 | 0.47 |
| Ice storm | Relatively Low | 61st | 3.4 of 5 | 0.52 |
| Hail | Relatively Low | 55th | 3.2 of 5 | 4.6 |
| Riverine flooding | Relatively Low | 51st | 3.0 of 5 | 0.64 |
| Wildfire | Very Low | 26th | 2.0 of 5 | <0.01 |
| Lightning | Very Low | 24th | 2.0 of 5 | 36.7 |
| Earthquake | Very Low | 5th | 1.2 of 5 | <0.01 |
Perils not assessed in Brown 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 Brown 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.