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Louron

Hydro power plant in Midi-Pyrenees, France. Approximate location 42.79, 0.41.

HydroMidi-PyreneesFrance

Louron is a 49 MW hydro power plant in Midi-Pyrenees, France. It is operated by GDF-SUEZ. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 49,356 homes (estimated). It ranks #149 of 2,188 France power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1940, it is around 86 years old — an older, legacy facility. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 10.4% of France's electricity; the national grid averages 41 gCO₂/kWh (94.9% low-carbon) (2025).

49MW installed capacity
49,356homes powered (est.)
1940commissioned (~86 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1026720.

Capacity vs largest hydro plants in France

GRAND MAISON: 1,690 MW2kGRAND MAIS…MONTEZIC: 910 MW910MONTEZICREVIN: 808 MW808REVINSUPER BISSORTE: 742 MW742SUPER BISS…BATHIE: 575 MW575BATHIECHEYLAS: 485 MW485CHEYLASPOUGET: 447 MW447POUGETGENISSIAT: 420 MW420GENISSIAT

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

Owner

Operated by GDF-SUEZ. All plants by this company →

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 42.8°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

5.7°Cannual mean temp
4,476heating degree-days (base 18°C)
0cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
1,693 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -2 °CJF: -1 °CFM: 1 °CMA: 3 °CAM: 7 °CMJ: 11 °CJJ: 15 °CJA: 15 °CAS: 12 °CSO: 7 °CON: 2 °CND: 0 °CD15 °C

Heating degree-days here run 82% 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: 90/100 — this site sits in the top third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

In colder climates, uninsulated hot equipment (boilers, turbines, valves, steam lines) loses proportionally more heat to ambient air — exactly the loss Inzonex modular insulation is designed to cut.

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.

How it compares & nearby plants

The #83 largest hydro power plant of 429 in France by capacity.

France has 429 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 19,506 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 42.79, 0.41 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

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