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Shulbinskaya HPP

Hydro power plant in East Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan. Approximate location 50.399, 81.069.

HydroEast KazakhstanKazakhstanunknownPre Construction

Shulbinskaya HPP is a 720 MW hydro power station in East Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan. It is operated by AES. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 721k homes (estimated). It ranks #17 of 80 Kazakhstan power plants by installed capacity. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 8.5% of Kazakhstan's electricity; the national grid averages 805 gCO₂/kWh (14.9% low-carbon) (2025).

720Legacy source-record capacity
720,822homes powered (est.)
1987Pre Construction year

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1000295.

Data status

Known data

FacilityShulbinskaya HPP WRI
CountryKazakhstan · East Kazakhstan WRI
Coordinates50.399, 81.069 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity720 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerAES WRI
Commissioned1987 WRI
Technologyunknown WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#17 of 80 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#1 of 4 calculated
Homes-powered equivalent720,822 calculated
Climate3.3°C · HDD 5,502 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC2 · 33/100 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

Technically it is described as unknown. Its current lifecycle status is “pre construction” — so it is not yet, or no longer, generating at full output. 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 Kazakhstan

Shulbinskaya HPP: 720 MW720Shulbinska…JSC Bukhtarminskaya: 675 MW675JSC Bukhta…Kapchagan: 364 MW364KapchaganUst-Kamenogorsk HPP: 331 MW331Ust-Kameno…

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

Owner

Operated by AES. 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 humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 50.4°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

3.3°Cannual mean temp
5,502heating degree-days (base 18°C)
155cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
286 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -15 °CJF: -15 °CFM: -8 °CMA: 6 °CAM: 13 °CMJ: 19 °CJJ: 21 °CJA: 19 °CAS: 12 °CSO: 4 °CON: -6 °CND: -12 °CD21 °C

Heating degree-days here run 124% 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: 96/100 — 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 thermal cycling the leading environmental stress.

C2ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
33/100environmental-severity index
36.2°Cseasonal temperature swing
9999 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 #1 largest hydro power plant of 4 in Kazakhstan by capacity.

Kazakhstan has 4 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 2,090 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 50.399, 81.069 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Shulbinskaya HPP?

Shulbinskaya HPP is a 720 MW source-record hydro power plant in East Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan, planned/announced for 1987.

How many homes can Shulbinskaya HPP power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 720,822 homes (estimated).

Who operates Shulbinskaya HPP?

Shulbinskaya HPP is operated by AES.

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