On the morning of Thursday 21 November 2024, after Hydro 2024 Conference in Graz (Austria), a meeting was organized by the Task 9 of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Technology Collaboration Programme (TCP) on Hydropower.

Some key messages are reminded hereunder:

TCP Coordination Group on Energy System Flexibility 

One of the central discussions of the session highlighted the importance of integrating innovative measures to improve energy system flexibility. The need for enhanced collaboration across three key components of the energy system was emphasized:

1. 1. Supply with TCPs: Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Mitigation, BioEnergy, SolarPACES, and others.
   2. Distribution/Storage/Transformation with TCPs: ISGAN, Energy Storage, and more.
   3. Demand with TCPs: 4E, User, and others.

The session stressed the need to strengthen cooperation, particularly on emerging energy shifts such as Power to Heat (P2H) and Power to Fuels (P2F). Looking ahead, opportunities for collaboration include the IEA Wind TCP and IEA Hydropower TCP ExCo Meeting, which will take place from May 19-23, 2025, in Oslo and Gaustablikk, Norway.

For more information, visit the conference page.

LDES & VRE

Australia’s National Electricity Market (NEM) faces significant challenges with curtailment and spillage of Variable Renewable Energy (VRE). In 2023, 2% of the total NEM demand was curtailed or spilled, with a forecasted 15-20% of VRE energy expected to be curtailed annually as VRE output increases. This leads to inefficiencies, as seen in a case where 15.6 GWh of energy was spilled over three days, followed by a 19.2 GWh deficit, causing price inflation.

The session posed critical questions: How can we ensure new VRE investments despite these high levels of waste? Can we leverage Value-Adjusted Levelized Cost of Energy (VALCOE) as a tool to better assess these issues?

In conclusion, the discussions pointed to the need for better metrics to evaluate capacity increases, storage, and flexibility services, particularly from hydropower. Task 9 is tasked with further developing the VALCOE concept to improve these evaluations.

Hydropower in the European Union: current activities at the JRC

A presentation on hydropower in the EU discussed the use of existing databases to assess energy storage capacities in Reservoir-Based Storage Hydropower (RSHP) and Pumped-Storage Hydropower (PSH) systems.

Key data highlighted included:

• Theoretical EU storage capacity: 6.6 TWh for PSH and 54.7 TWh for reservoirs.
• Reported EU storage capacity: 2.2 TWh for PSH and 23.8 TWh for reservoirs.
• Seasonal storage potential: 50 TWh via open-loop PSH and 173 TWh considering cascade effects, with costs under 50 USD/MWh.
• Despite the large storage potential, 90% of new reservoirs are currently deemed uneconomic under existing market dynamics and environmental constraints.

Following extensive discussion, it was suggested that a new task dedicated to PSH could be formed within the IEA Hydropower programme, addressing technical, financial, and regulatory aspects. This proposal will be further explored in the upcoming IEA meetings.

For more information, see the 2024 Clean Energy Technology Observatory Hydropower Report.

Updates from Japan on Pumped Storage Hydropower

Japan expressed interest in assessing the value of pumped storage power generation and improving its business feasibility. The proposal will be submitted in detail at the next ExCo meeting.

World Bank’s Focus on Hydropower

The World Bank is prioritizing hydropower as a clean energy technology to support the global transition to net-zero emissions. As part of the IEA’s Net Zero Scenario, the World Bank projects the deployment of 7,000 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030 to meet the Paris Agreement's climate goals. In 2024, the Bank supported the development of 11.3 GW of hydropower capacity, with an additional 10.7 GW in the pipeline.

The Bank’s Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP) works to remove barriers to transformational hydropower projects and assist in hydropower asset upgrades to meet future flexibility demands. 

Environmental Constraints in Hydropower Scheduling

Linn Emelie Schäffer presented research on incorporating environmental constraints in hydropower scheduling models. The study showed that including environmental considerations, such as flood and drought management, could improve economic performance by up to 2.6%. As market conditions change, the importance of incorporating flexibility into decision support tools is becoming increasingly evident.