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Bin Qasim

Oil power plant in Sindh, Pakistan. Approximate location 24.7844, 67.3604.

OilSindhPakistanCCGT · HRSG

Bin Qasim is a 1,260 MW oil power station in Sindh, Pakistan. It is operated by Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC). Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 946k homes (estimated). It ranks #21 of 122 Pakistan power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1983, it is around 43 years old — long-established. In context, oil supplies about 9.2% of Pakistan's electricity; the national grid averages 347 gCO₂/kWh (54.9% low-carbon) (2025).

1,260Legacy source-record capacity
3HRSG unit(s)
946,080homes powered (est.)
1983commissioned (~43 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1001624.

Data status

Known data

FacilityBin Qasim WRI
CountryPakistan · Sindh WRI
Coordinates24.7844, 67.3604 WRI
FuelOil WRI
MW installed capacity1,260 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerKarachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) WRI
Commissioned1983 WRI
TechnologyCCGT · HRSG WRI

Calculated from dataset

CO₂ emissions2,483,460 t CO₂/yr calculated
Capacity rank in country#21 of 122 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#2 of 19 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers6.78× · 186 MW median · 19 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent946,080 calculated
Climate26.0°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC1 · 44/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset

Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.

Data provenance

The capacity and fuel fields on this page are source-record values from the upstream open dataset. They are useful for identification and ranking, but they have not been upgraded to a 2026 registry/GEM-location verified value.

capacity: WRI Global Power Plant Database source-record (legacy); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 1,260 MW, Bin Qasim is well above the median oil plant in Pakistan (186 MW). Technically it is described as CCGT; combined-cycle with a heat-recovery steam generator (HRSG). Oil-fired plants burn heavy fuel oil or diesel, usually as peaking or backup capacity on islands and grids without gas pipelines; high fuel cost keeps their utilisation low.

Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.

Capacity vs largest oil plants in Pakistan

Hub Power Project: 1,292 MW1kHub Power …Bin Qasim: 1,260 MW1kBin QasimPak Gen (Pvt) Limited: 365 MW365Pak Gen (P…AES Lalpir Ltd. Mahmood Kot Muzaffargarh: 362 MW362AES Lalpir…Hub Power Project- Narowal: 220 MW220Hub Power …Narowal power plant: 202 MW202Narowal po…Piranghaib Multan: 192 MW192Piranghaib…Nishat Chunian Limited: 186 MW186Nishat Chu…

Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).

Owner

Operated by Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC).

Local climate & thermal context

This oil plant burns oil or diesel to drive turbines or reciprocating engines. It sits in a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 24.8°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

26.0°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
2,948cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
7 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 18 °CJF: 20 °CFM: 24 °CMA: 28 °CAM: 31 °CMJ: 31 °CJJ: 30 °CJA: 29 °CAS: 29 °CSO: 28 °CON: 24 °CND: 20 °CD31 °C

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

For a plant’s outdoor hardware — heat-recovery steam generators (HRSG), expansion joints, valves, flanges and their insulation — the local climate sets how fast unprotected steel and coatings degrade. This site sits in a benign, low-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C1 — Very low), with dust abrasion the leading environmental stress.

C1ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
44/100environmental-severity index
13.3°Cseasonal temperature swing
60 kmdistance to coast

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

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 #2 largest oil power plant of 19 in Pakistan by capacity.

Pakistan has 19 oil power plants in this dataset, together about 5,584 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 24.7844, 67.3604 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Bin Qasim?

Bin Qasim is a 1,260 MW source-record oil power plant in Sindh, Pakistan, commissioned in 1983.

How many homes can Bin Qasim power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 946,080 homes (estimated).

Who operates Bin Qasim?

Bin Qasim is operated by Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC).

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