La Poterne power station is a 63 MW coal power plant in Isère, France. It is operated by City of Grenoble [100%]. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 79k homes (estimated). It ranks #151 of 2,216 France power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1960, it is around 66 years old — an older, legacy facility. In context, coal supplies about 0.3% of France's electricity; the national grid averages 41 gCO₂/kWh (94.9% low-carbon) (2025).
Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id GEM_coa_lapoterne_franc.
Data status
Known data
Calculated from dataset
Not available
Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.
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 63 MW, La Poterne power station is below the median coal plant in France (540 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 France coal capacity
- 0.8% of 7,595 MW across 14 plants in this dataset
- Age among peers
- 0 of 10 dated coal plants in France 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 France
Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).
Owner
Operated by City of Grenoble [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 45.2°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 15% 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: 58/100 — 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 mild atmospheric environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C2 — Low), 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 #14 largest coal power plant of 14 in France by capacity.
France has 14 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 7,595 MW of capacity.
Nearby power plants
- Grenoble · Solar · 1.1 MW · Rhone-Alpes
- La Tronche · Biomass · 5.7 MW · Rhone-Alpes
- Pont-de-Claix power station · Gas · 78 MW · Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
- Sassenage · Hydro · 10.53 MW · Rhone-Alpes
- Domène · Hydro · 3.2 MW · Rhone-Alpes
- Vaulnaveys-le-Haut · Hydro · 1.58 MW · Rhone-Alpes
Location
Coordinates 45.18, 5.72 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.
Frequently asked questions
What type of power plant is La Poterne power station?
La Poterne power station is a 63 MW coal power plant in Isère, France, commissioned in 1960.
Who operates La Poterne power station?
La Poterne power station is operated by City of Grenoble [100%].