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CURACAUTIN

Oil power plant in Araucania, Chile. Approximate location -38.4528, -71.8194.

OilAraucaniaChile

CURACAUTIN is a 2 MW oil power plant in Araucania, Chile. It is operated by SAGESA. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 1.8k homes (estimated). It ranks #296 of 336 Chile power plants by installed capacity. In context, oil supplies about 0.6% of Chile's electricity; the national grid averages 289 gCO₂/kWh (66.4% low-carbon) (2025).

2Legacy source-record capacity
1,802homes powered (est.)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id CHL0000044.

Data status

Known data

FacilityCURACAUTIN WRI
CountryChile · Araucania WRI
Coordinates-38.4528, -71.8194 WRI
FuelOil WRI
MW installed capacity2 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerSAGESA WRI

Calculated from dataset

CO₂ emissions4,730 t CO₂/yr calculated
Capacity rank in country#296 of 336 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#66 of 78 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers0.21× · 11 MW median · 78 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent1,802 calculated
Climate8.3°C · HDD 3,551 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 30/100 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 2 MW, CURACAUTIN is below the median oil plant in Chile (11 MW). 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 Chile

NUEVA RENCA: 379 MW379NUEVA RENCAQUINTERO: 248 MW248QUINTEROCala Morritos power station: 200 MW200Cala Morri…Canelillo power station: 200 MW200Canelillo …YUNGAY: 180 MW180YUNGAYCARDONES: 154 MW154CARDONESSANTA LIDIA: 141 MW141SANTA LIDIALOS VIENTOS: 132 MW132LOS VIENTOS

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

Owner

Operated by SAGESA. All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This oil plant burns oil or diesel to drive turbines or reciprocating engines. It sits in a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb) — Southern Hemisphere, latitude 38.5°S — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

8.3°Cannual mean temp
3,551heating degree-days (base 18°C)
0cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
1,081 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 14 °CJF: 14 °CFM: 11 °CMA: 8 °CAM: 6 °CMJ: 3 °CJJ: 3 °CJA: 4 °CAS: 5 °CSO: 8 °CON: 10 °CND: 13 °CD14 °C

Heating degree-days here run 44% above 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: 77/100 — this site sits in the top third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

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 corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with marine corrosion the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
30/100environmental-severity index
11.4°Cseasonal temperature swing
49 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 #66 largest oil power plant of 78 in Chile by capacity.

Chile has 78 oil power plants in this dataset, together about 3,578 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates -38.4528, -71.8194 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is CURACAUTIN?

CURACAUTIN is a 2 MW source-record oil power plant in Araucania, Chile.

How many homes can CURACAUTIN power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 1,802 homes (estimated).

Who operates CURACAUTIN?

CURACAUTIN is operated by SAGESA.

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