Didcot power station — United Kingdom

Didcot power station is a 2,172 MW coal power station in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom. It is operated by RWE Generation SE [100%]. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 2.7 million homes (estimated). It ranks #11 of 2,860 United Kingdom power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1970, it is around 56 years old — an older, legacy facility. In context, coal supplies about 0.1% of United Kingdom's electricity; the national grid averages 217 gCO₂/kWh (64.4% low-carbon) (2025).

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

Data provenance

Capacity and fuel are the upstream open-dataset record, not yet matched to a 2026 registry or GEM entry.

capacity: GEM GCPT; fuel: GEM GCPT

In context: how this plant compares

At 2,172 MW, Didcot power station is well above the median coal plant in United Kingdom (1,140 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.

Key facts

Share of United Kingdom coal capacity

6.1% of 35,428 MW across 23 plants in this dataset

Age among peers

9 of 22 dated coal plants in United Kingdom 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 United Kingdom

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

Owner

Operated by RWE Generation SE [100%].

Local climate & thermal context

This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 51.6°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

Monthly mean temperature

Heating degree-days here run 19% 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: 60/100 — this site sits in the mid 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

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 #4 largest coal power plant of 23 in United Kingdom by capacity.

United Kingdom has 23 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 35,428 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

• Didcot B · Gas · 1,440 MW · England
• Didcot GT · Gas · 100 MW · England
• Sutton Courtenay Landfill Scheme · Waste · 5.6 MW · England
• Sutton Courtney · Waste · 6 MW · England
• EFDA JJET Fusion Flywheel · Storage · 400 MW · England
• Hill Farm Solar Park (VoWH) · Solar · 14.8 MW · England

Location

Coordinates 51.622252, -1.260853 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions