SANTA MARINA GR 3 — Spain

SANTA MARINA GR 3 is a 34.7 MW hydro power plant in Castille and Leon, Spain. It is operated by ENDESA GENERACION S.A.. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 35k homes (estimated). It ranks #390 of 899 Spain power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1992, it is around 34 years old — long-established. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 11.4% of Spain's electricity; the national grid averages 154 gCO₂/kWh (74.6% low-carbon) (2025).

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1023649.

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 34.7 MW, SANTA MARINA GR 3 is below the median hydro plant in Spain (55.2 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.

Key facts

Share of Spain hydro capacity

0.2% of 15,680 MW across 124 plants in this dataset

Age among peers

102 of 116 dated hydro plants in Spain are older

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

Capacity vs largest hydro plants in Spain

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

Owner

Operated by ENDESA GENERACION S.A.. All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 42.5°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 0% 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: 50/100 — this site sits in the mid 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 moderately corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C3 — Medium), 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 #86 largest hydro power plant of 124 in Spain by capacity.

Spain has 124 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 15,680 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

• La Robla Fenosa power station · Coal · 655 MW · Castille and Leon
• LA ROBLA GRUPO 2 · Coal · 619.1 MW · Castille and Leon
• CORBERA · Wind · 49.2 MW · Castille and Leon
• P. E. EL REDONDAL (2 FASE 28/3/05) · Wind · 30.6 MW · Castille and Leon
• Villabrázaro · Solar · 7.5 MW · Castille and Leon
• COMPOSTILLA II GR 5 · Coal · 1,005.1 MW · Castille and Leon

Location

Coordinates 42.5103, -5.873 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions