# Coal power setup > Canonical source: [Coal power setup](https://satisfactorybase.com/guides/coal-power-setup) > Language: en Version check pending: The fixed machine/water examples and walking-distance recommendations are retained from the original guide. Node locations describe the default world only. The 8 generators : 3 water extractors : 120 coal ratio, pipe and head-lift limits, and the recommended coal-plus-water spot for each start location of the default world with the actual node ids. Coal power (Tier 3) is the first power source that runs without refuelling. The maths is simple and the same everywhere; the only real decision is *where* – and the answer is always "at the water". ## The numbers | | Value | |---|---| | :icon[Desc_GeneratorCoal_C] Coal-Powered Generator | **75 MW**, burns **15 :icon[Desc_Coal_C] [coal](/wiki/items/coal)/min** (300 MJ each, 4 s), needs **45 m³ :icon[Desc_Water_C] [water](/wiki/items/water)/min** | | :icon[Desc_WaterPump_C] Water Extractor | **120 m³/min**, 20 MW, 10 m head lift, needs ≥ 9 m deep water | | :icon[Desc_MinerMk1_C] Miner Mk.1 on coal | 30 / 60 / 120 per min (impure / normal / pure); Mk.2: 60 / 120 / 240 | | :icon[Desc_Pipeline_C] Pipeline Mk.1 / Mk.2 | 300 / 600 m³/min = 6.67 / 13.3 generators per pipe | | :icon[Desc_PipelinePump_C] Pump Mk.1 / Mk.2 | +20 m / +50 m head lift (does not add up across junctions) | | Cost per generator | 20 Reinforced Iron Plate, 10 Rotor, 30 Cable | Generators = coal ÷ 15 · Extractors = generators × 45 ÷ 120 = generators ÷ 2.67 · Mk.1 pipes = generators ÷ 6.67. Generators clock linearly (200 % = 150 MW, 30 coal, 90 m³), so overclocking them is never a loss – only the shards are. ## Standard blocks | Block | Coal/min | Generators | Extractors | Power | |---|---|---|---|---| | Starter | 60 – 1 Mk.1 on a normal node | 4 | 2 at 75 % (or 1 at 150 %) | 300 MW | | **Classic** | **120** – 2 Mk.1 normal, 1 Mk.1 pure, 1 Mk.2 normal, or 1 Mk.1 normal at 200 % | **8** | **3** | **600 MW** | | Pure Mk.2 | 240 | 16 | 6 | 1 200 MW | | Mk.3 belt | 270 – Mk.2 pure at 225 % | 18 | 7 | 1 350 MW | The classic block – 8 generators, 3 extractors, 120 coal, 600 MW – is what every guide builds first. Build it as two rows of four with the coal belt down the middle (a splitter manifold; the last generators fill up after a few minutes), and feed the water pipe from more than one point so no Mk.1 segment has to carry the full 360 m³/min (or use 4 extractors at 75 %). Reserve about one generator for the plant itself: 3 extractors = 60 MW plus the miner. Prime it with ~100 hand-mined coal and three temporary Biomass Burners so the extractors can start. **Water goes downhill for free.** Extractors push 10 m; a Mk.1 pump adds 20 m. Put generators at or below the water level, or use a lake that lies above your factory: the level of every lake is in the [world](/wiki/world/biomes) tables. ## Where to build it – per start location Coordinates in game metres (X east, Y south); node ids are the map's ids. All four seeded plants use Miner Mk.1 on every node of the cluster; each is a multiple of the 8-generator block. ### Grass Fields Four normal coal nodes on the shore of the northern Grass Fields lake, about 1 km north-west of the spawn iron. The nodes sit at −36 m, the lake at −27 m – place the extractors in the lake and the generators on the shore, no pumps. | Node | Purity | Position (m) | Mk.1 rate | |---|---|---|---| | BP_ResourceNode559 | normal | −894, 1368 | 60 | | BP_ResourceNode560 | normal | −868, 1382 | 60 | | BP_ResourceNode504 | normal | −784, 1292 | 60 | | BP_ResourceNode503 | normal | −760, 1306 | 60 | 240 coal/min → **16 generators, 6 extractors, 1 200 MW** – start with one 8-generator block on two nodes and add the second later. The two pure coal nodes of the biome (west mesa at (−610, 962), +212 m; south-east island at (−661, 2969)) have no usable water next to them; belt their coal here instead. Factory: [Grass Fields – Coal power 1 200 MW](/w/starter-guide/factories/0851e846-7b22-5e48-af35-02e7c139cd77) · [map](/w/starter-guide/map#-1;-82641;133679) ### Rocky Desert Four normal coal nodes at the Rocky Desert lake, 800 m east of the spawn iron, right at sea level (nodes −14 to −16 m, lake −17.7 m). The most-recommended first coal spot of the map: water, coal and a flat shore in one place. | Node | Purity | Position (m) | Mk.1 rate | |---|---|---|---| | BP_ResourceNode6_379 | normal | −1101, −1292 | 60 | | BP_ResourceNode5_381 | normal | −1077, −1306 | 60 | | BP_ResourceNode7_380 | normal | −1026, −1403 | 60 | | BP_ResourceNode122 | normal | −996, −1468 | 60 | 240 coal/min → **16 generators, 6 extractors, 1 200 MW**. Expansion: three pure coal nodes on the plateau at (−1136, −505), (−1132, −441), (−1076, −524) (+162 m, 360 coal/min with Mk.1) – belt the coal down, the water stays at the lake. Factory: [Rocky Desert – Coal power 1 200 MW](/w/starter-guide/factories/7344e041-f434-544c-9ca5-d823ad941b09) · [map](/w/starter-guide/map#-1;-105020;-136736) ### Northern Forest Three pure and one normal coal node beside the Lake Forest lake (97 m), 800 m south-east of the pure-iron cluster and roughly at its altitude. Alpha spitters guard the shore – clear them first. | Node | Purity | Position (m) | Mk.1 rate | |---|---|---|---| | BP_ResourceNode449 | pure | 1363, −209 | 120 | | BP_ResourceNode469 | pure | 1388, −240 | 120 | | BP_ResourceNode452 | pure | 1227, −270 | 120 | | BP_ResourceNode451 | normal | 1281, −248 | 60 | 420 coal/min → **28 generators, 11 extractors, 2 100 MW** – more than a starter needs, so begin with one pure node (8 generators, 3 extractors, needs a Mk.2 belt or two Mk.1 belts) and grow. Two Mk.1 water lines or one Mk.2 line per 13 generators. Factory: [Northern Forest – Coal power 2 100 MW](/w/starter-guide/factories/2a4e3ed5-2d78-5f1b-8ab4-c23e527e4601) · [map](/w/starter-guide/map#-1;131463;-24167) ### Dune Desert Three normal coal nodes at the oasis lakes (55 m) in the east of the biome, 800 m from the central iron; the nodes lie at 52–59 m, level with the water. | Node | Purity | Position (m) | Mk.1 rate | |---|---|---|---| | BP_ResourceNode617 | normal | 3626, −1358 | 60 | | BP_ResourceNode619 | normal | 3659, −1334 | 60 | | BP_ResourceNode618 | normal | 3681, −1392 | 60 | 180 coal/min → **12 generators, 5 extractors, 900 MW** (one 8-block plus 4). Next steps: the pure + normal pair on the east coast at (4045, −1168) / (4048, −1140) with unlimited sea water, and the two impure nodes at the northern lake (3654, −801) / (3689, −762). Factory: [Dune Desert – Coal power 900 MW](/w/starter-guide/factories/83c3e5dc-3c8a-5bc2-9ca8-528469a6f4e0) · [map](/w/starter-guide/map#-1;365525;-136102) ## How the planner models it The planner has no generator building, so the seeded coal factories are manual graphs: the coal node(s) from the map and one resource node per Water Extractor feed two output nodes that carry the generators' demand (15 coal and 45 m³ water per generator). The factory name states the generator count and MW; the summary counts the miners and extractors and their consumption, not the generated power. Fork the world and change the output amounts to size your own plant. - [Coal](/wiki/items/coal) - [Water](/wiki/items/water) - [Choosing a start location](/guides/starter-locations) - [Starter Guide world](/w/starter-guide)