Home / Asia / India / PONG

PONG

Hydro power plant in Punjab, India. Approximate location 31.9667, 75.9469.

HydroPunjabIndiaconventional storage

PONG is a 396 MW hydro power station in Punjab, India. It is operated by Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) [100%]. Based on reported annual generation of 1,505 GWh, it can supply roughly 430k homes. It ranks #598 of 2,229 India power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1979, it is around 47 years old — long-established. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 8.6% of India's electricity; the national grid averages 670 gCO₂/kWh (26.7% low-carbon) (2025).

396Source-backed capacity
1,505GWh reported / yr
430,000homes powered
1979commissioned (~47 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id IND0000340.

Data status

Known data

FacilityPONG WRI
CountryIndia · Punjab WRI
Coordinates31.9667, 75.9469 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity396 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerBhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) [100%] WRI
Commissioned1979 WRI
Technologyconventional storage WRI
GWh reported / yr1,505 GWh/yr WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#598 of 2229 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#36 of 233 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers4.95× · 80 MW median · 233 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent430,000 calculated from reported generation
Climate22.2°C · HDD 416 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC3 · 38/100 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/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 L100000601998); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 396 MW, PONG is well above the median hydro plant in India (80 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.

Reported generation trend

2014: 1,321 GWh20142015: 1,726 GWh20152016: 1,363 GWh20162017: 1,632 GWh20172018: 1,505 GWh20182k GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) [100%].

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a humid subtropical (dry winter) climate (Köppen Cwa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 32.0°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

22.2°Cannual mean temp
416heating degree-days (base 18°C)
1,968cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
562 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 12 °CJF: 15 °CFM: 19 °CMA: 25 °CAM: 30 °CMJ: 31 °CJJ: 28 °CJA: 27 °CAS: 26 °CSO: 23 °CON: 18 °CND: 14 °CD31 °C

Heating degree-days here run 83% 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: 19/100 — this site sits in the bottom 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 moderately corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C3 — Medium), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C3ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
38/100environmental-severity index
19.2°Cseasonal temperature swing
1192 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 #36 largest hydro power plant of 233 in India by capacity.

India has 233 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 45,527 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 31.9667, 75.9469 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is PONG?

PONG is a 396 MW source-record hydro power plant in Punjab, India, commissioned in 1979.

How much electricity does PONG generate?

PONG generates about 1,505 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can PONG power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 430,000 homes.

Who operates PONG?

PONG is operated by Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) [100%].

Built from open public data; no personal information. Operate this site? Request a correction or removal.