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Wuskwatim

Hydro power plant in Manitoba, Canada. Approximate location 55.5383, -98.4938.

HydroManitobaCanadaconventional storage

Wuskwatim is a 210 MW hydro power station in Manitoba, Canada. It is operated by Wuskwatim Power Ltd. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 210k homes (estimated). It ranks #158 of 1,211 Canada power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 2012, it is around 14 years old — relatively modern. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 52.8% of Canada's electricity; the national grid averages 191 gCO₂/kWh (77.0% low-carbon) (2025).

210Source-backed capacity
210,240homes powered (est.)
2012commissioned (~14 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id CAN0002260.

Data status

Known data

FacilityWuskwatim WRI
CountryCanada · Manitoba WRI
Coordinates55.5383, -98.4938 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity210 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerWuskwatim Power Ltd WRI
Commissioned2012 WRI
Technologyconventional storage WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#158 of 1211 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#73 of 556 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers17.50× · 12 MW median · 556 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent210,240 calculated
Climate-2.5°C · HDD 7,453 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC1 · 31/100 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/or fuel fields on this page include a source-backed provenance label from GEM, an official registry, Wikidata, OSM, or a cross-source match.

capacity: GEM tracker 2026 operating-unit sum (location L100000600542); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 210 MW, Wuskwatim is well above the median hydro plant in Canada (12 MW). Technically it is described as conventional storage. 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 Canada

Robert-Bourassa: 5,616 MW6kRobert-Bou…Churchill Falls: 5,428 MW5kChurchill …La Grande-4: 2,779 MW3kLa Grande-4Mica: 2,746 MW3kMicaG.M. Shrum: 2,730 MW3kG.M. ShrumRevelstoke: 2,480 MW2kRevelstokeLa Grande-3: 2,417 MW2kLa Grande-3La Grande-2-A: 2,106 MW2kLa Grande-…

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

Owner

Operated by Wuskwatim Power Ltd.

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a subarctic (boreal) climate (Köppen Dfc) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 55.5°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

-2.5°Cannual mean temp
7,453heating degree-days (base 18°C)
0cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
238 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: -25 °CJF: -20 °CFM: -13 °CMA: -2 °CAM: 6 °CMJ: 13 °CJJ: 16 °CJA: 15 °CAS: 9 °CSO: 1 °CON: -10 °CND: -21 °CD16 °C

Heating degree-days here run 203% 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: 100/100 — 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 benign, low-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C1 — Very low), with thermal cycling the leading environmental stress.

C1ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
31/100environmental-severity index
41.0°Cseasonal temperature swing
254 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 #73 largest hydro power plant of 556 in Canada by capacity.

Canada has 556 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 81,037 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 55.5383, -98.4938 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Wuskwatim?

Wuskwatim is a 210 MW source-record hydro power plant in Manitoba, Canada, commissioned in 2012.

How many homes can Wuskwatim power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 210,240 homes (estimated).

Who operates Wuskwatim?

Wuskwatim is operated by Wuskwatim Power Ltd.

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