Search
Search plants, projects, owners, and states
Search plants, projects, owners, and states
73.8 MW Hydro operating in Butte, CA
73.8 MW
Nameplate Capacity
2
Generators
units
Conventional Hydroelectric
Technology
1949
Operating Since
Coordinates
39.8259, -121.4097
County
Butte, CA
Nearby Plants
Forward-looking, asset-specific exposure analytics combining climate hazards, generation variability, and counterparty risk into a single decision-grade view. Powered by InfraRisk.
See the full risk decomposition + scenarios for this asset.
Owner data does not fully agree across sources.
EIA typically reports the operating utility, while GEM resolves to the financial owner or parent corporation. Both can be correct.
| Field | EIA | GEM | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | Pacific Gas & Electric Co. | Pacific Gas and Electric | — |
| Owner(s) | Pacific Gas & Electric Co. | PG&E | — |
| Status | Operating | operating | — |
Cresta is a 73.8 MW hydroelectric power plant located in Butte County, California. The plant began operating in 1949 and utilizes conventional hydroelectric technology. It consists of two generators and is owned and operated by Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (PG&E). Cresta is connected to the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) balancing authority and is within the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) NERC region.
In the most recent year with available data, Cresta generated 338,088 MWh of electricity, achieving a capacity factor of 52.4%. The plant's installed cost was $1,038.35 per kW. Cresta ranks as the 55th largest power plant in California out of 247, and 241st nationally out of 1464 plants.
Generated from EIA, GEM, and public data sources
ISO/RTO
CAISO
Market
ISO/RTO Member
NERC Region
WECC — Western Electricity Coordinating Council
Balancing Authority
California Independent System Operator (CISO)
Grid Voltage
230.0 kV
Regulatory Status
RE — Regulated
Entity Type
Investor-Owned Utility
Sector
Electric Utility
Monthly net generation as reported to EIA-923 — useful for historical context. Confidence varies sharply by fuel type; the band above and the “About this data” button explain the caveats specific to this plant and how InfraSure’s in-house model handles them.
26.9K MWh
Latest Month
338.1K MWh
Annual Generation
52.4%
Capacity Factor
Forward-looking generation outlook with probabilistic ranges across weather, demand, and policy scenarios. Powered by InfraSure's generation modeling stack.
See the full forecast + scenario decomposition for this asset.
Hydro with storage · PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC COMPANY · Data from 2015–2024
$1,051/kW
Installed Cost
$9.5/MWh
Operating Cost
Annual Capital & Operating Expenses
Cumulative Installed Cost
Per-Unit Cost Trends
Forward revenue, DSCR bands, and refinancing risk projected under price, demand, and policy scenarios. Powered by InfraSure's asset cashflow stack.
See the full revenue + DSCR projection for this asset.
Market Position
ISO/RTO Market
CAISO
LMP Node
CRESTA_7_PL1X2-APND
Pricing Hub
TH_NP15_GEN-APND
Location Type
Aggregated Node
Node Source
EIA-860 direct report
No wholesale contracts disclosed in FERC EQR for this plant.
FERC EQR captures bilateral wholesale energy + capacity contracts ≥$1M/yr filed quarterly by jurisdictional sellers — covers renewable PPAs, thermal energy sales agreements, capacity contracts, and tolling agreements alike. Many plants don't appear: regulated-utility output flows to ratepayers via cost-of-service rather than bilateral contracts; small projects fall below the filing threshold; tax-equity-financed renewables route offtake to investors not utilities; merchant plants sell into ISO clearing markets without bilateral contracts. News-extracted buyer facts (below) may surface contracts disclosed only through announcements.
No insights linked yet for this plant.
Insights enrichment runs on demand — we have the pipeline, we just haven't fetched coverage for this plant yet. Request a detailed re-run and we'll add it.
No Ask reports yet for this entity.
Ask about CrestaForward forecasts, scenario decomposition, and risk-decision tooling for this asset.
FERC issued Notice of Authorization for Continued Project Operation for PG&E's Cresta hydroelectric project, affirming its ongoing licensed operating status.
sourceFERC published notice establishing a reasonable period of time for PG&E's water quality certification application related to the Cresta project, a relicensing process step.
source