LOWER METTUR is a 120 MW hydro power station in Tamil Nadu, India. It is operated by Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corp Ltd [100%]. Based on reported annual generation of 219 GWh, it can supply roughly 63k homes. It ranks #807 of 2,225 India power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1988, it is around 38 years old — long-established. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 8.6% of India's electricity; the national grid averages 670 gCO₂/kWh (26.7% low-carbon) (2025).
Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id IND0000238.
Data status
Known data
Calculated from dataset
Not available
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 30 MW for Lower Mettur II hydroelectric plant, but it is not used as the public primary value until scope is verified (unit vs operating vs installed/project total).
Data provenance
Capacity and fuel are the upstream open-dataset record, not yet matched to a 2026 registry or GEM entry.
capacity: WRI GPPD; fuel: WRI GPPD
In context: how this plant compares
At 120 MW, LOWER METTUR is well above the median hydro plant in India (80 MW). Technically it is described as run-of-river. 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.
Key facts
- Load factor
- 21%, from 219 GWh of reported generation; the median for 173 hydro plants in India that report generation is 35%
- Generation trend
- 265 GWh in 2014 and 219 GWh in 2018 (−17%)
- Highest and lowest year
- 2014: 265 GWh; 2016: 92 GWh
- Share of India hydro capacity
- 0.3% of 45,527 MW across 233 plants in this dataset
- Age among peers
- 103 of 233 dated hydro plants in India are older
Calculated from the capacity and generation records in this dataset (WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0)).
Reported generation trend
Annual generation (GWh), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).
Owner
Operated by Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corp Ltd [100%].
Local climate & thermal context
This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 11.6°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.
Monthly mean temperature
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
This site sits in a moderately corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C3 — Medium), 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 #89 largest hydro power plant of 233 in India by capacity.
India has 233 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 45,527 MW of capacity.
Nearby power plants
- Samudram · Solar · 39 MW · Tamil Nadu
- METTUR · Coal · 840 MW · Tamil Nadu
- METTUR TPS EXT · Coal · 600 MW · Tamil Nadu
- METTUR DAM · Hydro · 250 MW · Tamil Nadu
- METTUR MALCO · Coal · 100 MW · Tamil Nadu
- Mettur Siscol power station · Coal · 60 MW · Tamil Nadu
Location
Coordinates 11.6425, 77.7583 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.
Frequently asked questions
What type of power plant is LOWER METTUR?
LOWER METTUR is a 120 MW hydro power plant in Tamil Nadu, India, commissioned in 1988.
How much electricity does LOWER METTUR generate?
LOWER METTUR generates about 219 GWh of electricity per year.
Who operates LOWER METTUR?
LOWER METTUR is operated by Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corp Ltd [100%].