Pacific Northwest Region

Third Power Plant

The Third Power Plant is the largest of the three powerhouses located at Grand Coulee Dam. Designed by famous architect, Marcel Breuer, the plant has a unique design reflecting a Brutalist architectural style. The powerplant was built from 1967 – 1975 with the six generating units installed over the following five years.

The plant contains three generating units rated at 600 MW and three units rated at 805MW, resulting in a total capacity of 4,215 MW. The average power generation at Grand Coulee is 21 billion MWH per year. The Third Power Plant generates about 2/3 of the total power produced at Grand Coulee. When the Third Power Plant was completed and the last generating unit went into service in 1980, Grand Coulee was the largest hydropower plant in the world. One of the generating units in the Third Power Plant can supply a city the size of Seattle with all its power needs for a year.

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Related Links

Grand Coulee Dam

Grand Coulee Powerplants

Columbia Basin Project

Animation of Activities at Grand Coulee Dam's Third Power Plant

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Contact
Lynne Brougher
Public Affairs Officer
lbrougher@usbr.gov
(509) 633-9503