Home / Asia / India / Tharangambadi power station

Tharangambadi power station

Coal power plant in Tamil Nadu, India. Approximate location 11.061111, 79.842222.

CoalTamil NaduIndiasubcritical

Tharangambadi power station is a 1,320 MW coal power station in Tamil Nadu, India. It is operated by Chettinad Power Corporation Pvt Ltd [100%]. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 1.7 million homes (estimated). It ranks #307 of 2,225 India power plants by installed capacity. In context, coal supplies about 70.8% of India's electricity; the national grid averages 670 gCO₂/kWh (26.7% low-carbon) (2025).

1,320MW installed capacity
1,651,885homes powered (est.)

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

Data status

Known data

FacilityTharangambadi power station GEM-coal
CountryIndia · Tamil Nadu GEM-coal
Coordinates11.061111, 79.842222 GEM-coal
FuelCoal GEM-coal
MW installed capacity1,320 MW GEM GCPT; source record
OwnerChettinad Power Corporation Pvt Ltd [100%] GEM-coal
Technologysubcritical GEM-coal

Calculated from dataset

CO₂ emissions5,781,600 t CO₂·a⁻¹ calculated
Capacity rank in country#307 / 2225 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#287 / 713 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers1.32× · 1,000 MW · n=713 calculated
Homes-powered equivalent1,651,885 calculated
Climate28.6°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC5 · 51/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

CommissionedNot available not in dataset
GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset

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: GEM GCPT; fuel: GEM GCPT

In context: how this plant compares

At 1,320 MW, Tharangambadi power station is well above the median coal plant in India (1,000 MW). Technically it is described as 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.

Capacity vs largest coal plants in India

Ontimavadi power station: 6,300 MW6kOntimavadi…Welspun Mega Industrial & Energy Park: 5,280 MW5kWelspun Me…Darlipali power station: 4,800 MW5kDarlipali …VINDH_CHAL STPS: 4,760 MW5kVINDH_CHAL…MUNDRA TPP: 4,620 MW5kMUNDRA TPPMundra Thermal Power Project (Adani): 4,620 MW5kMundra The…MUNDRA UMPP: 4,000 MW4kMUNDRA UMPPTata Mundra Ultra Mega Power Project: 4,000 MW4kTata Mundr…

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

Owner

Operated by Chettinad Power Corporation Pvt Ltd [100%].

Local climate & thermal context

This coal plant burns coal to raise high-pressure steam that spins a turbine-generator. It sits in a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 11.1°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

28.6°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
3,854cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
3 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 25 °CJF: 26 °CFM: 28 °CMA: 30 °CAM: 31 °CMJ: 31 °CJJ: 31 °CJA: 30 °CAS: 30 °CSO: 28 °CON: 26 °CND: 25 °CD31 °C

This site has effectively no heating season (tropical/equatorial climate), so winter heat loss is not the driver here. The thermal concern shifts to year-round process heat and humidity/heat-driven corrosion of hot equipment.

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 an aggressive, high-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C5 — Very high), with marine salt corrosion the leading environmental stress.

C5ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
51/100environmental-severity index
6.1°Cseasonal temperature swing
21 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 #287 largest coal power plant of 713 in India by capacity.

India has 713 coal power plants in this dataset, together about 805,419 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 11.061111, 79.842222 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Tharangambadi power station?

Tharangambadi power station is a 1,320 MW coal power plant in Tamil Nadu, India.

How many homes can Tharangambadi power station power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 1,651,885 homes (estimated).

Who operates Tharangambadi power station?

Tharangambadi power station is operated by Chettinad Power Corporation Pvt Ltd [100%].

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