BALCO Korba power station is a 2,010 MW coal power station in Chhattisgarh, India. It is operated by Bharat Aluminium Co Ltd [100%]. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 2.5 million homes (estimated). It ranks #109 of 2,225 India power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1988, it is around 38 years old — long-established. Its modelled annual emissions are 9,881,700 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 2.3 million cars driven for a year. In context, coal supplies about 70.8% of India's electricity; the national grid averages 670 gCO₂/kWh (26.7% low-carbon) (2025).
Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id CT-4679.
Data status
Known data
Modelled source data
Calculated from dataset
Not available
Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.
Capacity provenance
The public capacity above is the current source-record value. A 2026 tracker candidate lists 2,010 MW for BALCO Korba power station, but it is not used as the public primary value until scope is verified (unit vs operating vs installed/project total).
Data provenance
Source of the capacity and fuel values:
capacity: GEM · 2026 · L100000102125; fuel: Climate TRACE
In context: how this plant compares
At 2,010 MW, BALCO Korba power station is well above the median coal plant in India (1,000 MW). Technically it is described as subcritical. Coal plants burn pulverised coal to raise high-pressure steam for a turbine; they run as baseload but are the most carbon-intensive mainstream source and the first targeted for retirement or efficiency retrofits.
Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.
~9,881,700 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms
This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:
Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; modelled emissions from Climate TRACE.
Key facts
- Share of India coal capacity
- 0.2% of 805,419 MW across 713 plants in this dataset
- Age among peers
- 40 of 354 dated coal plants in India are older
Calculated from the capacity and generation records in this dataset (WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0)).
Capacity vs largest coal plants in India
Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).
Owner
Operated by Bharat Aluminium Co Ltd [100%].
Local climate & thermal context
This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 22.4°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.
Monthly mean temperature
This site has effectively no heating season (tropical/equatorial climate), so winter heat loss is not the driver here. The thermal concern shifts to year-round process heat and humidity/heat-driven corrosion of hot equipment.
Climate normals: WorldClim 2.1 (1970–2000 monthly normals, 10 arc-min, CC BY 4.0); zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid). Degree-days & heat-demand index computed by PowerAtlas — a modelled heat-demand proxy, not a measured site figure.
Site climate & environmental severity
This site sits in a moderately corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C3 — Medium), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.
Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.
How it compares & nearby plants
The #103 largest coal power plant of 713 in India by capacity.
India has 713 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 805,419 MW of capacity.
Nearby power plants
- Korba Thermal power station · Coal · 240 MW · Chhattisgarh
- KORBA-EAST · Coal · 890 MW · Chhattisgarh
- Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Thermal Power Station · Coal · 500 MW · Chhattisgarh
- Korba South Thermal Power Project · Coal · 1,000 MW · Chhattisgarh
- KORBA-WEST · Coal · 1,340 MW · Chhattisgarh
- KORBA STPS · Coal · 2,600 MW · Chhattisgarh
Location
Coordinates 22.399, 82.74 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.
Frequently asked questions
What type of power plant is BALCO Korba power station?
BALCO Korba power station is a 2,010 MW coal power plant in Chhattisgarh, India, commissioned in 1988.
Who operates BALCO Korba power station?
BALCO Korba power station is operated by Bharat Aluminium Co Ltd [100%].
How much CO₂ does BALCO Korba power station emit?
BALCO Korba power station has modelled emissions of about 9,881,700 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).