WELLS
OperatingHydro power plant
- Capacity
- 774 MW
- Primary fuel
- Hydro
- County
- Chelan County
- Operator
- PUD NO 1 OF DOUGLAS COUNTY
- Status
- Operating
- Commissioned
- 1967
- EIA plant ID
- 3886
- Generators
- 10
- Technology
- Conventional Hydroelectric
- Net generation (2024)
- 3,502 GWh
- Capacity factor (2024, EIA nameplate)
- 47%
- Data vintage
- EIA-860 2024 final; EIA-923 2022-2024 final
- Coordinates
- 47.9470, -119.8652
WELLS, a 774 MW Hydro power plant in Chelan County, Washington. Operated by PUD NO 1 OF DOUGLAS COUNTY, commissioned 1967.
How WELLS compares
With 774 MW of capacity, WELLS ranks 11th among the 126 operating power plants Bywatts maps in Washington and 10th of the 65 operating Hydro plants in the state. It accounts for about 3.7% of Washington's operating Hydro capacity and 2.6% of all operating capacity in the state. Nationally it is the 30th-largest of the 1,243 operating Hydro plants in the database. Commissioned in 1967, it is older than 65% of the 125 operating Washington plants with a recorded commissioning year. It shares Chelan County with 3 other operating plants, including ROCKY REACH and ROCK ISLAND.
EIA-860 lists 10 generators at the site with 855 MW of nameplate capacity, all conventional hydroelectric technology (this page's HIFLD capacity figure is 774 MW). Net generation was 3,502 GWh in 2024 (a 47% capacity factor), down 22% from 2022. Its generators came online between 1967 and 1969.
Grid neighborhood
The nearest named substation is FOSTER CREEK (115 kV), about 10.2 miles away; the closest transmission line found within 10 miles is a 230 kV line owned by PUD NO 1 OF DOUGLAS COUNTY, under 0.1 miles away. Another 2 operating power plants totaling 2,515 MW sit within 25 miles; the largest is CHIEF JOSEPH (2,456 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
WELLS is a 774 MW hydro power plant in Chelan County, WA, operated by PUD NO 1 OF DOUGLAS COUNTY, commissioned in 1967. Chelan County carries moderate modeled catastrophe exposure in the FEMA National Risk Index, scoring 2.5 of 5 at the 36th national percentile. Wildfire is the leading peril, rated Relatively High by FEMA at the 100th 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.
Chelan County hazard ratings
| Peril | FEMA rating | National percentile | Peril score | Events per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildfire | Relatively High | 100th | 5.0 of 5 | 0.02 |
| Riverine flooding | Relatively Moderate | 95th | 4.8 of 5 | 1.5 |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | 85th | 4.4 of 5 | <0.01 |
| Heat wave | Relatively Low | 62nd | 3.5 of 5 | 3.7 |
| Winter weather | Relatively Moderate | 40th | 2.6 of 5 | 26.4 |
| Lightning | Relatively High | 7th | 1.3 of 5 | 9.9 |
| Strong wind | Very Low | 4th | 1.2 of 5 | 0.06 |
| Tornado | Very Low | 4th | 1.2 of 5 | 0.05 |
| Ice storm | Very Low | 4th | 1.2 of 5 | 0.07 |
| Hail | Relatively Low | 4th | 1.1 of 5 | 0.07 |
Perils not assessed in Chelan 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 Chelan 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.