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Cannington Mine

Gas power plant in Queensland, Australia. Approximate location -21.8601, 140.9158.

GasQueenslandAustraliaCO₂ modelled

Cannington Mine is a 40 MW gas power plant in Queensland, Australia. It is operated by BHP Billiton. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 45k homes (estimated). It ranks #286 of 536 Australia power plants by installed capacity. Its modelled annual emissions are 55,056 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 13k cars driven for a year. In context, gas supplies about 16.4% of Australia's electricity; the national grid averages 525 gCO₂/kWh (38.6% low-carbon) (2025).

40Legacy source-record capacity
45,051homes powered (est.)
55,056t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id AUS0000452.

Data status

Known data

FacilityCannington Mine WRI
CountryAustralia · Queensland WRI
Coordinates-21.8601, 140.9158 WRI
FuelGas WRI
MW installed capacity40 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerBHP Billiton WRI

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions55,056 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#286 of 536 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#113 of 163 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers0.38× · 106 MW median · 163 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent45,051 calculated
Climate24.6°C · HDD 97 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC1 · 43/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

CommissionedNot available not in dataset
TechnologyNot available not in dataset
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 40 MW, Cannington Mine is below the median gas plant in Australia (106 MW). Gas plants burn natural gas either in open-cycle turbines for fast peaking, or in combined-cycle units that recover exhaust heat in an HRSG to reach roughly 55–62% efficiency — the cleanest-burning fossil option.

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

~55,056 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

13kpassenger cars driven for a year
7.2khomes' yearly energy use
918ktree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; modelled emissions from Climate TRACE.

Capacity vs largest gas plants in Australia

Tomago Aluminium Smelter: 810 MW810Tomago Alu…Torrens Island B: 800 MW800Torrens Is…Marulan power station: 800 MW800Marulan po…Tallawarra: 796 MW796TallawarraKerrawary Power Station: 770 MW770Kerrawary …Callide Gas Peaker Power Plant: 750 MW750Callide Ga…Colongra: 724 MW724ColongraUranquinty: 664 MW664Uranquinty

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

Owner

Operated by BHP Billiton.

Local climate & thermal context

This gas plant burns natural gas in a turbine — often in a combined-cycle setup — to generate electricity. It sits in a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh) — Southern Hemisphere, latitude 21.9°S — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

24.6°Cannual mean temp
97heating degree-days (base 18°C)
2,488cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
255 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 30 °CJF: 30 °CFM: 28 °CMA: 25 °CAM: 20 °CMJ: 17 °CJJ: 16 °CJA: 19 °CAS: 23 °CSO: 27 °CON: 29 °CND: 31 °CD31 °C

Heating degree-days here run 96% below the median power plant in this dataset — a proxy for how much extra energy heated equipment must replace through its surfaces in winter.

Climate heat-demand index: 15/100 — this site sits in the bottom third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

A gas turbine here also runs ~7% below its ISO (15°C) rating at this annual mean (typical CCGT curve, estimate).

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)
43/100environmental-severity index
14.6°Cseasonal temperature swing
462 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 #113 largest gas power plant of 163 in Australia by capacity.

Australia has 163 gas power plants in this dataset, together about 29,942 MW of capacity.

Location

Coordinates -21.8601, 140.9158 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Cannington Mine?

Cannington Mine is a 40 MW source-record gas power plant in Queensland, Australia.

How many homes can Cannington Mine power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 45,051 homes (estimated).

Who operates Cannington Mine?

Cannington Mine is operated by BHP Billiton.

How much CO₂ does Cannington Mine emit?

Cannington Mine has modelled emissions of about 55,056 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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