Big Creek 3 — Plant Summary
- EIA Plant ID
- 319
- Capacity
- 174.5 MW
- Primary Fuel
- Hydro
- Technology
- Conventional Hydroelectric
- Status
- Operating
- Location
- Fresno, CA
- Operating Since
- 1923
- Generators
- 5
- Operator
- Southern California Edison Co
- Parent Company
- Edison International
- Annual Generation
- 673,627 MWh
- Capacity Factor
- 44.0%
- Balancing Authority
- California Independent System Operator
- ISO/RTO
- CAISO
- NERC Region
- WECC
Big Creek 3
OperatingHydro
Ranked #18 of 247 Hydro plants in CA#110 of 1454 nationally
174.5 MW Hydro operating in Fresno, CA — California Independent System Operator
EIAGEMWD
174.5 MW
Nameplate Capacity
5
Generators
units
Conventional Hydroelectric
Technology
1923
Operating Since
Location
Coordinates
37.1485, -119.3866
County
Fresno, CA
Nearby Plants
- Big Creek 8Hydro75 MW · 8.5 km
- Mammoth PoolHydro190 MW · 9.1 km
- Big Creek 2Hydro66.6 MW · 9.1 km
Ownership & Operator
| Field | EIA | GEM | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | Southern California Edison Co | Southern California Edison | — |
| Owner(s) | Southern California Edison Co | Edison International | — |
| Status | Operating | operating | — |
Ownership Chain
About
Big Creek 3 is a 174.5 MW hydroelectric power plant located in Fresno County, California. The plant began operating in 1923 and utilizes conventional hydroelectric technology. It consists of 5 generators and is owned by Edison International, with Southern California Edison Co. acting as the operator. The plant's primary fuel source is water (WAT).
In the most recent year of reported data, Big Creek 3 generated 673,627 MWh of electricity, achieving a capacity factor of 44.0%. The plant operates within the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) balancing authority and the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) NERC region. According to available data, the installed cost per kilowatt was $545.4. Big Creek 3 is ranked as the 18th largest of 42 hydroelectric plants in California, and 110th largest of 194 nationwide.
Generated from EIA, GEM, and public data sources
Engineering & Generators
Grid Context
NERC Region
WECC
Balancing Authority
California Independent System Operator
Grid Voltage
220 kV
Regulatory Status
RE
Entity Type
Investor-Owned Utility
Sector
Electric Utility
Generation
57.5K MWh
Latest Month
673.6K MWh
Annual Generation
44.0%
Capacity Factor
Jan 2023 – Dec 2025
Financial DataBeta
Source: FERC Form 1HIGH
$586/kW
Installed Cost
$9.9/MWh
Operating Cost
Southern California Edison Company
Reporting Utility
Cumulative Installed Cost
Per-Unit Cost Trends
Pricing & Market Data
HIGH confidenceMarket Position
ISO/RTO Market
CAISO
LMP Node
BCRK3-1_7_B1
Pricing Hub
TH_ZP26_GEN-APND
Location Type
Pricing Node
Node Source
Curated node match
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