Nord 2 — Germany

Nord 2 is a 332.7 MW coal power station in Bavaria, Germany. It is operated by SWM Services GmbH. Based on reported annual generation of 1,360 GWh, it can supply roughly 388k homes. It ranks #115 of 1,442 Germany power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1991, it is around 35 years old — long-established. Its annual emissions of 1,472,512 t CO₂/yr (EU ETS verified (EUTL 2023)) are equivalent to about 343k cars driven for a year. In context, coal supplies about 20.6% of Germany's electricity; the national grid averages 330 gCO₂/kWh (59.1% low-carbon) (2025).

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1005982.

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 332.7 MW, Nord 2 is well above the median coal plant in Germany (296.2 MW). Coal plants burn pulverised coal to raise high-pressure steam for a turbine; they run as baseload but are the most carbon-intensive mainstream source and the first targeted for retirement or efficiency retrofits.

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

1,472,512 t CO₂/yr — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; emissions per EU ETS verified (EUTL 2023) (measured for US EPA/EU ETS, modelled for Climate TRACE).

Key facts

Load factor

47%, from 1,360 GWh of reported generation, in line with the 47% median for 42 coal plants in Germany

Share of Germany coal capacity

0.5% of 64,920 MW across 124 plants in this dataset

Age among peers

81 of 117 dated coal plants in Germany are older

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

Reported generation trend

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

Owner

Operated by SWM Services GmbH.

Local climate & thermal context

This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 48.2°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

Monthly mean temperature

Heating degree-days here run 39% above 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: 73/100 — this site sits in the top 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 mild atmospheric environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C2 — Low), with humidity / wetness 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 #55 largest coal power plant of 124 in Germany by capacity.

Germany has 124 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 64,920 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

• München Nord power station · Coal · 405 MW · Bavaria
• Freimann power station · Gas · 100 MW · Bayern
• Aschheim Solar Power Plant · Solar · 1 MW · Bavaria
• Süd DT1 · Gas · 79.7 MW · Bavaria
• Süd DT60 · Gas · 127.6 MW · Bavaria
• Süd GT 61 · Gas · 444.6 MW · Bavaria

Location

Coordinates 48.1805, 11.6393 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions