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Morcenx

Biomass power plant in Aquitaine, France. Approximate location 44.0411, -0.8884.

BiomassAquitaineFranceCO₂ modelled

Morcenx is a 45 MW biomass power plant in Aquitaine, France. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 62k homes (estimated). It ranks #188 of 2,216 France power plants by installed capacity. Its modelled annual emissions are 58,488 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 14k cars driven for a year. In context, biomass supplies about 1.8% of France's electricity; the national grid averages 41 gCO₂/kWh (94.9% low-carbon) (2025).

45Source-backed capacity
62,358homes powered (est.)
58,488t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1024266.

Data status

Known data

FacilityMorcenx WRI
CountryFrance · Aquitaine WRI
Coordinates44.0411, -0.8884 WRI
FuelBiomass WRI
MW installed capacity45 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions58,488 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#188 of 2216 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#4 of 158 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers15.62× · 3 MW median · 158 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent62,358 calculated
Climate13.0°C · HDD 1,927 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 36/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

OwnerNot available not in dataset
CommissionedNot available not in dataset
TechnologyNot available not in dataset
GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset

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 L100000816878); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 45 MW, Morcenx is well above the median biomass plant in France (3 MW). Biomass plants burn organic material such as wood, residues or waste-derived fuel to raise steam; they are dispatchable and counted as low-carbon where the feedstock is sustainably sourced.

Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.

~58,488 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

14kpassenger cars driven for a year
7.6khomes' yearly energy use
975ktree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

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

Capacity vs largest biomass plants in France

Ivry-Paris XIII power station: 64 MW64Ivry-Paris…Issy-les-Moulineaux: 55 MW55Issy-les-M…Isséane Waste-To-Energy power station: 52 MW52Isséane Wa…Morcenx: 45 MW45MorcenxFos-sur-Mer: 40 MW40Fos-sur-MerGolbey power station: 38 MW38Golbey pow…Tarascon power station: 37 MW37Tarascon p…Alizay Paper Mill power station: 30 MW30Alizay Pap…

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

Local climate & thermal context

This biomass plant burns organic material (wood, residues) to raise steam for a turbine. It sits in a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 44.0°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

13.0°Cannual mean temp
1,927heating degree-days (base 18°C)
112cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
73 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 6 °CJF: 8 °CFM: 10 °CMA: 11 °CAM: 15 °CMJ: 17 °CJJ: 20 °CJA: 20 °CAS: 18 °CSO: 14 °CON: 10 °CND: 8 °CD20 °C

Heating degree-days here run 22% below 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: 42/100 — 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

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)
36/100environmental-severity index
13.4°Cseasonal temperature swing
26 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 #4 largest biomass power plant of 158 in France by capacity.

France has 158 biomass power plants in this dataset, together about 1,184 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 44.0411, -0.8884 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Morcenx?

Morcenx is a 45 MW source-record biomass power plant in Aquitaine, France.

How many homes can Morcenx power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 62,358 homes (estimated).

How much CO₂ does Morcenx emit?

Morcenx has modelled emissions of about 58,488 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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