Home / Europe / Poland / Rybnik

Rybnik

Coal power plant in Silesian Voivodeship, Poland. Approximate location 50.1331, 18.5232.

CoalSilesian VoivodeshipPolandSiemens Energy: SGT5-9000HLsubcriticalCO₂ modelled

Rybnik is a 1,720 MW coal power station in Silesian Voivodeship, Poland. It is operated by Polska Grupa Energetyczna SA. Based on reported annual generation of 6,766 GWh, it can supply roughly 1.9 million homes. It ranks #9 of 246 Poland power plants by installed capacity. Its modelled annual emissions are 2,788,000 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 650k cars driven for a year. In context, coal supplies about 50.4% of Poland's electricity; the national grid averages 589 gCO₂/kWh (31.5% low-carbon) (2025).

1,720Source-backed capacity
6,766GWh reported / yr
1,933,085homes powered
2,788,000t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)
2027Operating year

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1019033.

Data status

Known data

FacilityRybnik WRI
CountryPoland · Silesian Voivodeship WRI
Coordinates50.1331, 18.5232 WRI
FuelCoal WRI
MW installed capacity1,720 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerPolska Grupa Energetyczna SA WRI
Commissioned2027 WRI
Technologysubcritical · Siemens Energy: SGT5-9000HL WRI
GWh reported / yr6,766 GWh/yr WRI

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions2,788,000 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#9 of 246 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#6 of 93 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers10.36× · 166 MW median · 93 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent1,933,085 calculated from reported generation
Climate8.5°C · HDD 3,458 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC2 · 26/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset

Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.

Capacity provenance

The public capacity above is the current source-record value. A 2026 tracker candidate lists 875 MW for Rybnik power station, but it is not used as the public primary value until scope is verified (unit vs operating vs installed/project total).

Capacity claim grade: B_SCOPE_PARENT_COMPLEX - recommended action: build_parent_complex_model - confidence: not_comparable_without_scope. This follows a claim-based data model: value + scope + source + confidence, rather than silently overwriting records.

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: Wikidata P2109 nameplate capacity; fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 1,720 MW, Rybnik is well above the median coal plant in Poland (166 MW). Technically it is described as Siemens Energy: SGT5-9000HL; subcritical. 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.

~2,788,000 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

650kpassenger cars driven for a year
364khomes' yearly energy use
46 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; modelled emissions from Climate TRACE.

Reported generation trend

2015: 7,094 GWh20152016: 7,397 GWh20162017: 6,766 GWh20177k GWh

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

Owner

Operated by Polska Grupa Energetyczna SA. All plants by this company →

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 50.1°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

8.5°Cannual mean temp
3,458heating degree-days (base 18°C)
0cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
259 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -2 °CJF: 0 °CFM: 4 °CMA: 8 °CAM: 13 °CMJ: 16 °CJJ: 18 °CJA: 18 °CAS: 14 °CSO: 9 °CON: 4 °CND: 0 °CD18 °C

Heating degree-days here run 41% 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: 75/100 — 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 mild atmospheric environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C2 — Low), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C2ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
26/100environmental-severity index
19.6°Cseasonal temperature swing
485 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 #6 largest coal power plant of 93 in Poland by capacity.

Poland has 93 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 47,959 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 50.1331, 18.5232 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Rybnik?

Rybnik is a 1,720 MW source-record coal power plant in Silesian Voivodeship, Poland, planned/announced for 2027.

How much electricity does Rybnik generate?

Rybnik generates about 6,766 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can Rybnik power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 1,933,085 homes.

Who operates Rybnik?

Rybnik is operated by Polska Grupa Energetyczna SA.

How much CO₂ does Rybnik emit?

Rybnik has modelled emissions of about 2,788,000 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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