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LOWER PERIYAR

Hydro power plant in Kerala, India. Approximate location 9.9624, 76.957.

HydroKeralaIndiaconventional storage

LOWER PERIYAR is a 180 MW hydro power station in Kerala, India. It is operated by Kerala State Electricity Board LTD (KSEB) [100%]. Based on reported annual generation of 523 GWh, it can supply roughly 149k homes. It ranks #735 of 2,229 India power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1997, it is around 29 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).

180Source-backed capacity
523GWh reported / yr
149,314homes powered
1997commissioned (~29 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id IND0000239.

Data status

Known data

FacilityLOWER PERIYAR WRI
CountryIndia · Kerala WRI
Coordinates9.9624, 76.957 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity180 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerKerala State Electricity Board LTD (KSEB) [100%] WRI
Commissioned1997 WRI
Technologyconventional storage WRI
GWh reported / yr523 GWh/yr WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#735 of 2229 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#70 of 233 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers2.25× · 80 MW median · 233 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent149,314 calculated from reported generation
Climate22.8°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 39/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset
CO₂ emissionsnot applicable not applicable

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

Data provenance

The capacity and/or fuel fields on this page include a source-backed provenance label from GEM, an official registry, Wikidata, OSM, or a cross-source match.

capacity: GEM tracker 2026 (location L100000601945); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 180 MW, LOWER PERIYAR is well above the median hydro plant in India (80 MW). Technically it is described as conventional storage. 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.

Reported generation trend

2014: 574 GWh20142015: 508 GWh20152016: 306 GWh20162017: 505 GWh20172018: 523 GWh2018574 GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Kerala State Electricity Board LTD (KSEB) [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 10.0°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

22.8°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
1,762cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
848 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 21 °CJF: 22 °CFM: 24 °CMA: 25 °CAM: 25 °CMJ: 23 °CJJ: 22 °CJA: 22 °CAS: 23 °CSO: 23 °CON: 22 °CND: 21 °CD25 °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)
39/100environmental-severity index
3.5°Cseasonal temperature swing
89 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 #70 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

Location

Coordinates 9.9624, 76.957 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is LOWER PERIYAR?

LOWER PERIYAR is a 180 MW source-record hydro power plant in Kerala, India, commissioned in 1997.

How much electricity does LOWER PERIYAR generate?

LOWER PERIYAR generates about 523 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can LOWER PERIYAR power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 149,314 homes.

Who operates LOWER PERIYAR?

LOWER PERIYAR is operated by Kerala State Electricity Board LTD (KSEB) [100%].

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