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Nabara

Hydro power plant in Hiroshima, Japan. Approximate location 34.5625, 132.5167.

HydroHiroshimaJapanpumped storage

Nabara is a 620 MW hydro power station in Hiroshima, Japan. It is operated by Chugoku. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 621k homes (estimated). It ranks #134 of 692 Japan power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1976, it is around 50 years old — long-established. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 7.2% of Japan's electricity; the national grid averages 477 gCO₂/kWh (32.7% low-carbon) (2025).

620Source-backed capacity
620,708homes powered (est.)
1976commissioned (~50 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1000716.

Data status

Known data

FacilityNabara WRI
CountryJapan · Hiroshima WRI
Coordinates34.5625, 132.5167 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity620 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerChugoku WRI
Commissioned1976 WRI
Technologypumped storage WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#134 of 692 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#18 of 55 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers1.77× · 350 MW median · 55 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent620,708 calculated
Climate14.7°C · HDD 1,920 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 40/100 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 L100000602274); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 620 MW, Nabara is well above the median hydro plant in Japan (350 MW). Technically it is described as pumped 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.

Capacity vs largest hydro plants in Japan

Okutataragi: 1,932 MW2kOkutataragiOkumino: 1,500 MW2kOkuminoOkawachi: 1,280 MW1kOkawachiShin Takasegawa: 1,280 MW1kShin Takas…Okuyoshino: 1,206 MW1kOkuyoshinoMatanogawa: 1,200 MW1kMatanogawaOmarugawa: 1,200 MW1kOmarugawaTamahara: 1,200 MW1kTamahara

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

Owner

Operated by Chugoku. 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 humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 34.6°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

14.7°Cannual mean temp
1,920heating degree-days (base 18°C)
721cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
246 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 4 °CJF: 4 °CFM: 7 °CMA: 13 °CAM: 18 °CMJ: 21 °CJJ: 25 °CJA: 26 °CAS: 22 °CSO: 17 °CON: 11 °CND: 6 °CD26 °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)
40/100environmental-severity index
22.6°Cseasonal temperature swing
73 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 #18 largest hydro power plant of 55 in Japan by capacity.

Japan has 55 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 27,749 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 34.5625, 132.5167 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Nabara?

Nabara is a 620 MW source-record hydro power plant in Hiroshima, Japan, commissioned in 1976.

How many homes can Nabara power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 620,708 homes (estimated).

Who operates Nabara?

Nabara is operated by Chugoku.

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