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Kakira Sugar Works

Biomass power plant in Eastern Region, Uganda. Approximate location 0.44, 33.2.

BiomassEastern RegionUganda

Kakira Sugar Works is a 12 MW biomass power plant in Eastern Region, Uganda. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 17k homes (estimated). It ranks #11 of 16 Uganda power plants by installed capacity. In context, biomass supplies about 8.1% of Uganda's electricity; the national grid averages 59 gCO₂/kWh (97.1% low-carbon) (2024).

12Legacy source-record capacity
16,518homes powered (est.)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1023205.

Data status

Known data

FacilityKakira Sugar Works WRI
CountryUganda · Eastern Region WRI
Coordinates0.44, 33.2 WRI
FuelBiomass WRI
MW installed capacity12 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#11 of 16 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#1 of 1 calculated
Homes-powered equivalent16,518 calculated
Climate22.1°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC5 · 47/100 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 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

Biomass plants burn organic material such as wood, residues or waste-derived fuel to raise steam; they are dispatchable and counted as low-carbon where the feedstock is sustainably sourced.

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

Local climate & thermal context

This biomass plant burns organic material (wood, residues) to raise steam for a turbine. It sits in a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 0.4°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

22.1°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
1,492cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
1,174 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 22 °CJF: 23 °CFM: 23 °CMA: 22 °CAM: 22 °CMJ: 22 °CJJ: 21 °CJA: 21 °CAS: 22 °CSO: 22 °CON: 22 °CND: 22 °CD23 °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 an aggressive, high-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C5 — Very high), with marine salt corrosion the leading environmental stress.

C5ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
47/100environmental-severity index
1.9°Cseasonal temperature swing
30 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

Uganda has 1 biomass power plant in this dataset, together about 12 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 0.44, 33.2 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Kakira Sugar Works?

Kakira Sugar Works is a 12 MW source-record biomass power plant in Eastern Region, Uganda.

How many homes can Kakira Sugar Works power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 16,518 homes (estimated).

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