ROUND BUTTE
OperatingHydro power plant
- Capacity
- 247 MW
- Primary fuel
- Hydro
- County
- Jefferson County
- Operator
- PORTLAND GENERAL ELECTRIC CO
- Status
- Operating
- Commissioned
- 1964
- EIA plant ID
- 3050
- Generators
- 3
- Technology
- Conventional Hydroelectric
- Net generation (2024)
- 794 GWh
- Capacity factor (2024, EIA nameplate)
- 24%
- Data vintage
- EIA-860 2024 final; EIA-923 2022-2024 final
- Coordinates
- 44.6053, -121.2772
ROUND BUTTE, a 247 MW Hydro power plant in Jefferson County, Oregon. Operated by PORTLAND GENERAL ELECTRIC CO, commissioned 1964.
How ROUND BUTTE compares
With 247 MW of capacity, ROUND BUTTE ranks 17th among the 130 operating power plants Bywatts maps in Oregon and 6th of the 58 operating Hydro plants in the state. It accounts for about 3.0% of Oregon's operating Hydro capacity and 1.7% of all operating capacity in the state. Nationally it is the 76th-largest of the 1,243 operating Hydro plants in the database. Commissioned in 1964, it is older than 69% of the 128 operating Oregon plants with a recorded commissioning year. Its operator, PORTLAND GENERAL ELECTRIC CO, runs 14 operating plants in Oregon totaling 2,366 MW. It shares Jefferson County with 4 other operating plants, including PELTON and WARM SPRINGS POWER ENTERPRISES.
EIA-860 lists 3 generators at the site with 373 MW of nameplate capacity, all conventional hydroelectric technology (this page's HIFLD capacity figure is 247 MW). Net generation was 794 GWh in 2024 (a 24% capacity factor), up 5% from 2022.
Grid neighborhood
The nearest named substation is ROUND BUTTE (500 kV), about 0.5 miles away; the closest transmission line found within 10 miles is a 230 kV line owned by PORTLAND GENERAL ELECTRIC CO, under 0.1 miles away. Another 3 operating power plants totaling 134 MW sit within 25 miles; the largest is PELTON (110 MW, Hydro).
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
ROUND BUTTE is a 247 MW hydro power plant in Jefferson County, OR, operated by PORTLAND GENERAL ELECTRIC CO, commissioned in 1964. Jefferson County carries moderate modeled catastrophe exposure in the FEMA National Risk Index, scoring 2.4 of 5 at the 35th national percentile. Wildfire is the leading peril, rated Relatively Moderate by FEMA at the 95th 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.
Jefferson County hazard ratings
| Peril | FEMA rating | National percentile | Peril score | Events per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildfire | Relatively Moderate | 95th | 4.8 of 5 | <0.01 |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | 76th | 4.1 of 5 | <0.01 |
| Heat wave | Very Low | 59th | 3.4 of 5 | 3.1 |
| Hail | Very Low | 47th | 2.9 of 5 | 0.41 |
| Riverine flooding | Relatively Low | 39th | 2.6 of 5 | 0.04 |
| Lightning | Relatively Moderate | 35th | 2.4 of 5 | 11.0 |
| Strong wind | Very Low | 18th | 1.7 of 5 | 0.09 |
| Winter weather | Relatively Low | 7th | 1.3 of 5 | 14.8 |
| Tornado | Very Low | 3rd | 1.1 of 5 | 0.03 |
| Ice storm | Very Low | 2nd | 1.1 of 5 | 0.03 |
Perils not assessed in Jefferson 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 Jefferson 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.