Shenhua Qingyuan power station is a 3,000 MW coal power station in Guangdong, China. It is operated by Guoneng Qingyuan Power Generation Co Ltd. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 3.8 million homes (estimated). It ranks #154 of 6,685 China power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 2023, it is around 3 years old — recently built. Its modelled annual emissions are 8,281,000 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 1.9 million cars driven for a year. In context, coal supplies about 54.3% of China's electricity; the national grid averages 525 gCO₂/kWh (41.7% low-carbon) (2025).
Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id CT-2266.
Data status
Known data
Modelled source data
Calculated from dataset
Not available
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 3,000 MW for Shenhua Qingyuan power station, but it is not used as the public primary value until scope is verified (unit vs operating vs installed/project total).
Data provenance
Source of the capacity and fuel values:
capacity: GEM · 2026 · L100000100402; fuel: Climate TRACE
In context: how this plant compares
At 3,000 MW, Shenhua Qingyuan power station is well above the median coal plant in China (700 MW). Technically it is described as ultra-supercritical. 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.
~8,281,000 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms
This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:
Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; modelled emissions from Climate TRACE.
Key facts
- Share of China coal capacity
- 0.2% of 1,882,493 MW across 1,907 plants in this dataset
- Age among peers
- 1,304 of 1,446 dated coal plants in China are older
Calculated from the capacity and generation records in this dataset (WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0)).
Capacity vs largest coal plants in China
Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).
Owner
Operated by Guoneng Qingyuan Power Generation Co Ltd.
Local climate & thermal context
This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 24.4°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 68% 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: 24/100 — 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
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 #83 largest coal power plant of 1907 in China by capacity.
China has 1907 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 1,882,493 MW of capacity.
Nearby power plants
- Huadian Qingyuan Economic Cooperation Zone Gas-fired Thermal power station · Gas · 920 MW · Guangdong
- Dabu Coal · Coal · 1,200 MW · Guangdong
- Guangdong Shaoguan power station · Coal · 1,860 MW · Guangdong
- Huadian Qingyuan Huaqiao Industrial Park Distributed Gas power station · Gas · 250 MW · Guangdong
- Shaoguan nuclear power plant · Nuclear · 5,000 MW · Guangdong
- Baosteel Group Guangdong Shaoguan Iron &STEEL Co., Ltd. Gas Power Project · Gas · 270 MW · Guangdong
Location
Coordinates 24.417, 113.5409 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.
Frequently asked questions
What type of power plant is Shenhua Qingyuan power station?
Shenhua Qingyuan power station is a 3,000 MW coal power plant in Guangdong, China, commissioned in 2023.
Who operates Shenhua Qingyuan power station?
Shenhua Qingyuan power station is operated by Guoneng Qingyuan Power Generation Co Ltd.
How much CO₂ does Shenhua Qingyuan power station emit?
Shenhua Qingyuan power station has modelled emissions of about 8,281,000 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).