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Pedra do Garrafão

Hydro power plant in Espirito Santo, Brazil. Approximate location -21.1986, -41.3764.

HydroEspirito SantoBrazil

Pedra do Garrafão is a 19 MW hydro power plant in Espirito Santo, Brazil. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 19k homes (estimated). It ranks #1084 of 2,572 Brazil power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 2009, it is around 17 years old — relatively modern. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 51.8% of Brazil's electricity; the national grid averages 110 gCO₂/kWh (88.7% low-carbon) (2025).

19Legacy source-record capacity
19,021homes powered (est.)
2009commissioned (~17 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id BRA0028805.

Data status

Known data

FacilityPedra do Garrafão WRI
CountryBrazil · Espirito Santo WRI
Coordinates-21.1986, -41.3764 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity19 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
Commissioned2009 WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#1084 of 2572 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#280 of 701 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers1.65× · 12 MW median · 701 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent19,021 calculated
Climate23.4°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 39/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

OwnerNot available not in dataset
TechnologyNot available not in dataset
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 fuel fields on this page are source-record values from the upstream open dataset. They are useful for identification and ranking, but they have not been upgraded to a 2026 registry/GEM-location verified value.

capacity: WRI Global Power Plant Database source-record (legacy); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 19 MW, Pedra do Garrafão is well above the median hydro plant in Brazil (12 MW). 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 Brazil

Belo Monte: 11,233 MW11kBelo MonteTucuruí: 8,535 MW9kTucuruíItaipu (Parte Brasileira): 7,000 MW7kItaipu (Pa…Jirau: 3,750 MW4kJirauSanto Antônio: 3,568 MW4kSanto Antô…Ilha Solteira: 3,444 MW3kIlha Solte…Xingó: 3,162 MW3kXingóPaulo Afonso IV: 2,462 MW2kPaulo Afon…

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

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) — Southern Hemisphere, latitude 21.2°S — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

23.4°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
1,960cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
41 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 26 °CJF: 26 °CFM: 26 °CMA: 24 °CAM: 22 °CMJ: 21 °CJJ: 20 °CJA: 21 °CAS: 22 °CSO: 23 °CON: 24 °CND: 25 °CD26 °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 corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
39/100environmental-severity index
5.9°Cseasonal temperature swing
81 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 #280 largest hydro power plant of 701 in Brazil by capacity.

Brazil has 701 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 105,987 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates -21.1986, -41.3764 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Pedra do Garrafão?

Pedra do Garrafão is a 19 MW source-record hydro power plant in Espirito Santo, Brazil, commissioned in 2009.

How many homes can Pedra do Garrafão power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 19,021 homes (estimated).

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