NIHUIL IV — Argentina

NIHUIL IV is a 22.4 MW hydro power plant in Mendoza, Argentina. It is operated by HIDRONIHUIL SA - LIHUEN SA. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 22k homes (estimated). It ranks #158 of 275 Argentina power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1965, it is around 61 years old — an older, legacy facility. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 17.1% of Argentina's electricity; the national grid averages 346 gCO₂/kWh (41.6% low-carbon) (2025).

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id ARG0000213.

Capacity provenance

The public capacity above is the current source-record value. A 2026 tracker candidate lists 30 MW for Nihuil IV 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 22.4 MW, NIHUIL IV is below the median hydro plant in Argentina (42 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.

Key facts

Share of Argentina hydro capacity

0.2% of 9,991 MW across 50 plants in this dataset

Age among peers

14 of 49 dated hydro plants in Argentina are older

Calculated from the capacity and generation records in this dataset (WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0)).

Capacity vs largest hydro plants in Argentina

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

Owner

Operated by HIDRONIHUIL SA - LIHUEN SA.

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a cold semi-arid steppe climate (Köppen BSk) — Southern Hemisphere, latitude 34.8°S — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

Monthly mean temperature

Heating degree-days here run 17% 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: 44/100 — 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

This site sits in a benign, low-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C1 — Very low), with dust abrasion 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 #30 largest hydro power plant of 50 in Argentina by capacity.

Argentina has 50 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 9,991 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

• NIHUIL III · Hydro · 52 MW · Mendoza
• NIHUIL II · Hydro · 133.1 MW · Mendoza
• NIHUIL I · Hydro · 74.2 MW · Mendoza
• LOS CORONELES (EX 25 DE MAYO) · Hydro · 6.6 MW · Mendoza
• EL TIGRE · Hydro · 14.4 MW · Mendoza
• LOS REYUNOS · Hydro · 224 MW · Mendoza

Location

Coordinates -34.833, -68.5168 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions