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YANBU (SEC)

Oil power plant in Al Madinah al Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia. Approximate location 24.12, 38.118.

OilAl Madinah al MunawwarahSaudi ArabiaCO₂ modelled

YANBU (SEC) is a 54 MW oil power plant in Al Madinah al Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia. It is operated by Saudi Electricity Company (SEC). Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 41k homes (estimated). It ranks #145 of 156 Saudi Arabia power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1983, it is around 43 years old — long-established. Its modelled annual emissions are 138,202 t CO₂/yr (Climate TRACE), equivalent to about 32k cars driven for a year. In context, oil supplies about 34.5% of Saudi Arabia's electricity; the national grid averages 692 gCO₂/kWh (2.2% low-carbon) (2024).

54Legacy source-record capacity
40,771homes powered (est.)
138,202t CO₂ / yr (Climate TRACE)
1983commissioned (~43 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1030722.

Data status

Known data

FacilityYANBU (SEC) WRI
CountrySaudi Arabia · Al Madinah al Munawwarah WRI
Coordinates24.12, 38.118 WRI
FuelOil WRI
MW installed capacity54 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerSaudi Electricity Company (SEC) WRI
Commissioned1983 WRI

Modelled source data

CO₂ emissions138,202 t CO₂/yr modelled · Climate TRACE

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#145 of 156 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#71 of 76 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers0.15× · 365 MW median · 76 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent40,771 calculated
Climate27.6°C · HDD 0 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC5 · 62/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

TechnologyNot 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: WRI Global Power Plant Database source-record (legacy); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 54 MW, YANBU (SEC) is below the median oil plant in Saudi Arabia (365 MW). Oil-fired plants burn heavy fuel oil or diesel, usually as peaking or backup capacity on islands and grids without gas pipelines; high fuel cost keeps their utilisation low.

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

~138,202 t CO₂/yr (modelled) — in everyday terms

This facility's annual emissions are roughly equivalent to:

32kpassenger cars driven for a year
18khomes' yearly energy use
2.3 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years to absorb it

Equivalencies via US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies; modelled emissions from Climate TRACE.

Capacity vs largest oil plants in Saudi Arabia

SHAIBA (SEC): 6,794 MW7kSHAIBA (SE…RABIGH: 4,480 MW4kRABIGHRiyadh 9: 3,760 MW4kRiyadh 9Riyadh 10: 3,161 MW3kRiyadh 10RABIGH-2: 2,800 MW3kRABIGH-2JEDDAH SOUTH: 2,640 MW3kJEDDAH SOU…Shuqaiq Steam Power Plant: 2,640 MW3kShuqaiq St…Jeddah PP3 power plant: 1,988 MW2kJeddah PP3…

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

Owner

Operated by Saudi Electricity Company (SEC). All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This oil plant burns oil or diesel to drive turbines or reciprocating engines. It sits in a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 24.1°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

27.6°Cannual mean temp
0heating degree-days (base 18°C)
3,527cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
29 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 21 °CJF: 21 °CFM: 24 °CMA: 28 °CAM: 31 °CMJ: 32 °CJJ: 33 °CJA: 33 °CAS: 32 °CSO: 30 °CON: 26 °CND: 22 °CD33 °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)
62/100environmental-severity index
12.2°Cseasonal temperature swing
40 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 #71 largest oil power plant of 76 in Saudi Arabia by capacity.

Saudi Arabia has 76 oil power plants in this dataset, together about 61,625 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 24.12, 38.118 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is YANBU (SEC)?

YANBU (SEC) is a 54 MW source-record oil power plant in Al Madinah al Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia, commissioned in 1983.

How many homes can YANBU (SEC) power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 40,771 homes (estimated).

Who operates YANBU (SEC)?

YANBU (SEC) is operated by Saudi Electricity Company (SEC).

How much CO₂ does YANBU (SEC) emit?

YANBU (SEC) has modelled emissions of about 138,202 tonnes of CO₂ per year (Climate TRACE).

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