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NAJRAN

Oil power plant in Najran, Saudi Arabia. Approximate location 17.6, 44.337.

OilNajranSaudi ArabiaOCGTCO₂ modelled

NAJRAN is a 370 MW oil power station in Najran, Saudi Arabia. It is operated by Saudi Electricity Company (SEC). Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 278k homes (estimated). It ranks #83 of 156 Saudi Arabia power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 2013, it is around 13 years old — relatively modern. Its modelled annual emissions are 1,423,520 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 332k cars driven for a year. In context, oil supplies about 34.5% of Saudi Arabia's electricity; the national grid averages 692 gCO₂/kWh (2.2% low-carbon) (2024).

370Source-backed capacity
277,817homes powered (est.)
1,423,520t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)
2013commissioned (~13 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1030678.

Data status

Known data

FacilityNAJRAN WRI
CountrySaudi Arabia · Najran WRI
Coordinates17.6, 44.337 WRI
FuelOil WRI
MW installed capacity370 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerSaudi Electricity Company (SEC) WRI
Commissioned2013 WRI
TechnologyOCGT WRI

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions1,423,520 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#83 of 156 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#37 of 76 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers1.01× · 365 MW median · 76 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent277,817 calculated
Climate25.7°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC1 · 44/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset

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 370 MW for Najran power plant, but it is not used as the public primary value until scope is verified (unit vs operating vs installed/project total).

Capacity claim grade: A2_GENERAL_REVIEW - recommended action: manual_source_check - confidence: medium_low. This follows a claim-based data model: value + scope + source + confidence, rather than silently overwriting records.

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 L100000409131); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 370 MW, NAJRAN is around the median oil plant in Saudi Arabia (365 MW). Technically it is described as OCGT. Oil-fired plants burn heavy fuel oil or diesel, usually as peaking or backup capacity on islands and grids without gas pipelines; high fuel cost keeps their utilisation low.

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

~1,423,520 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

332kpassenger cars driven for a year
186khomes' yearly energy use
24 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

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

Capacity vs largest oil plants in Saudi Arabia

SHAIBA (SEC): 6,794 MW7kSHAIBA (SE…RABIGH: 4,480 MW4kRABIGHRiyadh 9: 3,760 MW4kRiyadh 9Riyadh 10: 3,161 MW3kRiyadh 10RABIGH-2: 2,800 MW3kRABIGH-2JEDDAH SOUTH: 2,640 MW3kJEDDAH SOU…Shuqaiq Steam Power Plant: 2,640 MW3kShuqaiq St…Jeddah PP3 power plant: 1,988 MW2kJeddah PP3…

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

Owner

Operated by Saudi Electricity Company (SEC). All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This oil plant burns oil or diesel to drive turbines or reciprocating engines. It sits in a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 17.6°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

25.7°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
2,810cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
1,235 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 18 °CJF: 21 °CFM: 24 °CMA: 26 °CAM: 30 °CMJ: 31 °CJJ: 32 °CJA: 32 °CAS: 29 °CSO: 25 °CON: 21 °CND: 19 °CD32 °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 benign, low-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C1 — Very low), with dust abrasion the leading environmental stress.

C1ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
44/100environmental-severity index
13.7°Cseasonal temperature swing
224 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 #37 largest oil power plant of 76 in Saudi Arabia by capacity.

Saudi Arabia has 76 oil power plants in this dataset, together about 61,625 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 17.6, 44.337 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is NAJRAN?

NAJRAN is a 370 MW source-record oil power plant in Najran, Saudi Arabia, commissioned in 2013.

How many homes can NAJRAN power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 277,817 homes (estimated).

Who operates NAJRAN?

NAJRAN is operated by Saudi Electricity Company (SEC).

How much CO₂ does NAJRAN emit?

NAJRAN has modelled emissions of about 1,423,520 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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