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Pintrun

Hydro power plant in Grisons, Switzerland. Approximate location 46.7395, 8.8287.

HydroGrisonsSwitzerlandconventional storage

Pintrun is a 6 MW hydro power plant in Grisons, Switzerland. It is operated by Local Municipality [8%]; Axpo Power AG [81%]; Canton of Grisons [10%]. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 6.5k homes (estimated). It ranks #122 of 174 Switzerland power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1944, it is around 82 years old — an older, legacy facility. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 52.3% of Switzerland's electricity; the national grid averages 39 gCO₂/kWh (97.7% low-carbon) (2025).

6Legacy source-record capacity
6,507homes powered (est.)
1944commissioned (~82 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1004425.

Data status

Known data

FacilityPintrun WRI
CountrySwitzerland · Grisons WRI
Coordinates46.7395, 8.8287 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity6 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerLocal Municipality [8%]; Axpo Power AG [81%]; Canton of Grisons [10%] WRI
Commissioned1944 WRI
Technologyconventional storage WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#122 of 174 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#111 of 162 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers0.36× · 18 MW median · 162 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent6,507 calculated
Climate1.0°C · HDD 6,175 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC1 · 15/100 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 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 6 MW, Pintrun is below the median hydro plant in Switzerland (18 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.

Capacity vs largest hydro plants in Switzerland

Bieudron: 1,260 MW1kBieudronLimmern: 1,000 MW1kLimmernNendaz: 392 MW392NendazGrimsel 2: 388 MW388Grimsel 2Bitsch (Biel): 340 MW340Bitsch (Bi…Biasca: 324 MW324BiascaFionnay (Dixence): 306 MW306Fionnay (D…Pradella: 300 MW300Pradella

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

Owner

Operated by Local Municipality [8%]; Axpo Power AG [81%]; Canton of Grisons [10%].

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a polar tundra climate (Köppen ET) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 46.7°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

1.0°Cannual mean temp
6,175heating degree-days (base 18°C)
0cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
2,066 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -5 °CJF: -6 °CFM: -4 °CMA: -2 °CAM: 3 °CMJ: 6 °CJJ: 9 °CJA: 9 °CAS: 6 °CSO: 2 °CON: -2 °CND: -4 °CD9 °C

Heating degree-days here run 151% 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: 98/100 — 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

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 thermal cycling the leading environmental stress.

C1ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
15/100environmental-severity index
14.7°Cseasonal temperature swing
232 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 #111 largest hydro power plant of 162 in Switzerland by capacity.

Switzerland has 162 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 9,694 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 46.7395, 8.8287 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Pintrun?

Pintrun is a 6 MW source-record hydro power plant in Grisons, Switzerland, commissioned in 1944.

How many homes can Pintrun power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 6,507 homes (estimated).

Who operates Pintrun?

Pintrun is operated by Local Municipality [8%]; Axpo Power AG [81%]; Canton of Grisons [10%].

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