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Veracel

Biomass power plant in Bahia, Brazil. Approximate location -16.374, -39.5705.

BiomassBahiaBrazil

Veracel is a 117 MW biomass power station in Bahia, Brazil. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 161k homes (estimated). It ranks #286 of 2,572 Brazil power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 2006, it is around 20 years old — relatively modern. In context, biomass supplies about 7.3% of Brazil's electricity; the national grid averages 110 gCO₂/kWh (88.7% low-carbon) (2025).

117Legacy source-record capacity
161,058homes powered (est.)
2006commissioned (~20 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id BRA0029014.

Data status

Known data

FacilityVeracel WRI
CountryBrazil · Bahia WRI
Coordinates-16.374, -39.5705 WRI
FuelBiomass WRI
MW installed capacity117 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
Commissioned2006 WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#286 of 2572 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#19 of 547 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers7.80× · 15 MW median · 547 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent161,058 calculated
Climate23.9°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 39/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

OwnerNot available not in dataset
TechnologyNot available not in dataset
GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset
CO₂ emissionsNot 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: WRI Global Power Plant Database source-record (legacy); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 117 MW, Veracel is well above the median biomass plant in Brazil (15 MW). Biomass plants burn organic material such as wood, residues or waste-derived fuel to raise steam; they are dispatchable and counted as low-carbon where the feedstock is sustainably sourced.

Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.

Capacity vs largest biomass plants in Brazil

Bracell Star power station: 420 MW420Bracell St…Klabin Celulose: 330 MW330Klabin Cel…Suzano Maranhão: 255 MW255Suzano Mar…CMPC (Antiga Aracruz Unidade Guaíba): 251 MW251CMPC (Anti…Eldorado Brasil: 226 MW226Eldorado B…Suzano Mucuri (Antiga Bahia Sul): 214 MW214Suzano Muc…Aracruz: 210 MW210AracruzFS Primavera power station: 191 MW191FS Primave…

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

Local climate & thermal context

This biomass plant burns organic material (wood, residues) to raise steam for a turbine. It sits in a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af) — Southern Hemisphere, latitude 16.4°S — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

23.9°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
2,146cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
125 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 26 °CJF: 26 °CFM: 26 °CMA: 25 °CAM: 23 °CMJ: 22 °CJJ: 22 °CJA: 22 °CAS: 23 °CSO: 24 °CON: 24 °CND: 25 °CD26 °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 a corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
39/100environmental-severity index
4.1°Cseasonal temperature swing
54 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 #19 largest biomass power plant of 547 in Brazil by capacity.

Brazil has 547 biomass power plants in this dataset, together about 17,205 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates -16.374, -39.5705 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Veracel?

Veracel is a 117 MW source-record biomass power plant in Bahia, Brazil, commissioned in 2006.

How many homes can Veracel power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 161,058 homes (estimated).

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