World Power Plants

Penas Blancas Hydroelectric Power Plant Costa Rica38 MW Hydroelectric

HydroRenewable

Penas Blancas Hydroelectric Power Plant is a 38 MW hydro facility in Costa Rica, operated since its commissioning. Ranked #10 of 18 hydro plants in Costa Rica. Its 38 MW represents 2.93% of Costa Rica's 1,298 MW total hydro capacity. The largest hydro plant in Costa Rica is Angostura Hydroelectric Power Station at 210 MW, making Penas Blancas 5.5 times smaller. Nearby plants within 50 km include Garabito ICE Power Plant (200 MW, Oil), Ventanas-Garita Hydroelectric Power Station (97.4 MW, Hydro), and Toro II Hydroelectric Power Station (65.2 MW, Hydro). The facility is located in the Puntarenas province, approximately 80 km from San José.

Capacity
38 MW
Commissioning Year
1998

28 years old

Owner
Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad
Location
10.3916°, -84.4383°

Costa Rica, North America

Context & rankings
  • 13. largest of 27 plants in Costa Rica
  • #15,503 worldwide by installed capacity
  • #3,561 of 8,493 Hydroelectric plants worldwide
  • 1.93% of the installed capacity of Costa Rica
Age & fleet comparison

28 years in operation

Hydroelectric fleet average: 42.1 years

Operator portfolio

Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad operates 17 plants totalling 1,180 MW

Regional density

21 plants within 100 km, 1,368 MW combined

Nearest plant: Buenos Aires de Pocosol (22.2 km)

Data provenance

Source: GEODB

Location

Coordinates:: 10.391600, -84.438300
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Carbon Footprint

Zero Direct Emissions

Penas Blancas Hydroelectric Power Plant Costa Rica is a hydro power plant producing approximately 133 GWh of clean electricity per year with zero direct CO₂ emissions during operation.

Lifecycle emissions: ~24 g CO₂/kWh (manufacturing, transport, decommissioning)

Technical Details

Primary Fuel Type
Hydro
Energy Source
Renewable
Country
Costa Rica
Continent
North America
Data Source
Global Power Plant Database

Costa RicaEnergy Profile

27
Total Plants
2.0 GW
Total Capacity
HydroOilGeothermalSolar
Top Fuels

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