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KOLAGHAT

Coal power plant in West Bengal, India. Approximate location 22.4157, 87.8713.

CoalWest BengalIndiasubcriticalCO₂ modelled

KOLAGHAT is a 1,260 MW coal power station in West Bengal, India. It is operated by The West Bengal Power Development Corporation Ltd. Based on reported annual generation of 3,926 GWh, it can supply roughly 1.1 million homes. It ranks #314 of 2,229 India power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1989, it is around 37 years old — long-established. Its modelled annual emissions are 5,345,300 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 1.2 million cars driven for a year. In context, coal supplies about 70.8% of India's electricity; the national grid averages 670 gCO₂/kWh (26.7% low-carbon) (2025).

1,260Legacy source-record capacity
3,926GWh reported / yr
1,121,800homes powered
5,345,300t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)
1989commissioned (~37 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id IND0000203.

Data status

Known data

FacilityKOLAGHAT WRI
CountryIndia · West Bengal WRI
Coordinates22.4157, 87.8713 WRI
FuelCoal WRI
MW installed capacity1,260 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerThe West Bengal Power Development Corporation Ltd WRI
Commissioned1989 WRI
Technologysubcritical WRI
GWh reported / yr3,926 GWh/yr WRI

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions5,345,300 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#314 of 2229 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#294 of 716 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers1.26× · 1,000 MW median · 716 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent1,121,800 calculated from reported generation
Climate26.5°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 44/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset

Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.

Capacity provenance

The public capacity above is the current source-record value. A 2026 tracker candidate lists 840 MW for Kolaghat Thermal Power Station, but it is not used as the public primary value until scope is verified (unit vs operating vs installed/project total).

Capacity claim grade: A3_MAJOR_REVIEW_SCOPE_STATUS - recommended action: manual_scope_status_check - confidence: low_until_scope_verified. This follows a claim-based data model: value + scope + source + confidence, rather than silently overwriting records.

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 1,260 MW, KOLAGHAT is well above the median coal plant in India (1,000 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.

~5,345,300 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

1.2 millionpassenger cars driven for a year
697khomes' yearly energy use
89 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

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

Reported generation trend

2014: 6,450 GWh20142015: 5,125 GWh20152016: 5,382 GWh20162017: 4,208 GWh20172018: 3,926 GWh20186k GWh

Annual generation (GWh), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).

Owner

Operated by The West Bengal Power Development Corporation Ltd.

Local climate & thermal context

This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 22.4°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

26.5°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
3,092cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
5 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 20 °CJF: 23 °CFM: 27 °CMA: 30 °CAM: 31 °CMJ: 30 °CJJ: 29 °CJA: 29 °CAS: 29 °CSO: 28 °CON: 24 °CND: 20 °CD31 °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 a corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
44/100environmental-severity index
11.0°Cseasonal temperature swing
80 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 #294 largest coal power plant of 716 in India by capacity.

India has 716 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 806,969 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 22.4157, 87.8713 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is KOLAGHAT?

KOLAGHAT is a 1,260 MW source-record coal power plant in West Bengal, India, commissioned in 1989.

How much electricity does KOLAGHAT generate?

KOLAGHAT generates about 3,926 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can KOLAGHAT power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 1,121,800 homes.

Who operates KOLAGHAT?

KOLAGHAT is operated by The West Bengal Power Development Corporation Ltd.

How much CO₂ does KOLAGHAT emit?

KOLAGHAT has modelled emissions of about 5,345,300 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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