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Hidroelectricas Virita

Hydro power plant in Veracruz, Mexico. Approximate location 18.8327, -97.1004.

HydroVeracruzMexico

Hidroelectricas Virita is a 3 MW hydro power plant in Veracruz, Mexico. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 2.6k homes (estimated). It ranks #347 of 366 Mexico power plants by installed capacity. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 8.1% of Mexico's electricity; the national grid averages 474 gCO₂/kWh (25.9% low-carbon) (2025).

3Legacy source-record capacity
2,602homes powered (est.)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id MEX0006631.

Data status

Known data

FacilityHidroelectricas Virita WRI
CountryMexico · Veracruz WRI
Coordinates18.8327, -97.1004 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity3 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#347 of 366 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#61 of 73 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers0.14× · 19 MW median · 73 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent2,602 calculated
Climate16.4°C · HDD 635 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 34/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

OwnerNot available not in dataset
CommissionedNot available not in dataset
TechnologyNot available not in dataset
GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset
CO₂ emissionsnot applicable not applicable

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 3 MW, Hidroelectricas Virita is below the median hydro plant in Mexico (19 MW). Hydropower converts the energy of falling or flowing water into electricity; output depends on rainfall and reservoir level, and large dams also provide grid balancing and storage.

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

Capacity vs largest hydro plants in Mexico

Manuel Moreno Torres (Chicoasén): 2,400 MW2kManuel Mor…Infiernillo: 1,200 MW1kInfiernilloMalpaso: 1,080 MW1kMalpasoAguamilpa Solidaridad: 960 MW960Aguamilpa …Belisario Domínguez (Angostura): 900 MW900Belisario …Alfredo Elías Ayub (La Yesca): 750 MW750Alfredo El…Leonardo Rodríguez Alcaine (El Cajón): 750 MW750Leonardo R…Carlos Ramírez Ulloa (El Caracol): 600 MW600Carlos Ram…

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

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 18.8°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

16.4°Cannual mean temp
635heating degree-days (base 18°C)
58cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
1,758 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 13 °CJF: 14 °CFM: 17 °CMA: 18 °CAM: 19 °CMJ: 18 °CJJ: 17 °CJA: 18 °CAS: 18 °CSO: 16 °CON: 15 °CND: 14 °CD19 °C

Heating degree-days here run 74% 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: 22/100 — this site sits in the bottom 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 humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
34/100environmental-severity index
5.9°Cseasonal temperature swing
101 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 #61 largest hydro power plant of 73 in Mexico by capacity.

Mexico has 73 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 12,457 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 18.8327, -97.1004 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Hidroelectricas Virita?

Hidroelectricas Virita is a 3 MW source-record hydro power plant in Veracruz, Mexico.

How many homes can Hidroelectricas Virita power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 2,602 homes (estimated).

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