After the steam leaves the turbine/generator (under vacuum) at 100°F, it must be cooled to condense it to water at 100°F. To cool the steam, it enters the condenser and passes over 80,000 feet of brass tubing, which have cool water flowing through them. This cool water is pumped through the tubes at a rate of up to 42,000 gallons per minute. After the warmed cooling water leaves the condenser, it flows out to the cooling tower.

At the cooling tower, one-third of the energy taken from the coal is dissipated into the atmosphere as thermal energy. This is where the characteristic cloud of vapor that is usually seen coming from the power plant is formed. This pond is alongside, but isolated from, the Chadakoin River. It receives the cooled water from the cooling tower and makeup water from the river is added to it, to replace what was evaporated.