Publications

Survey of Energy Resources Interim Update 2009

Hydropower update

The sources of energy provided by river flows and falling water are, like nuclear energy, usually discussed in terms of installed and planned electricity generating capacity and actual or potential power generation.

The information on hydro-electric capacity developments and plans summarised in the Country Notes below has been very largely derived from the Hydropower & Dams World Atlas 2008, published by Aqua~Media International. The estimates of hydro potential given in the 2008 Atlas show a number of variations from those in the 2006 edition which provided input (along with information reported by WEC Member Committees) to the 2007 SER, but the global totals of hydropower potential are little changed.

Table 7.1 gives the 2007 level of capacity and hydro-electric generation in each of the 161 countries with operating hydro plants. As far as possible, the output data quoted relate to net generation (i.e. excluding station use) and exclude pumped-storage plants. Where actual data for 2007 generation were not available at the time of preparation of the Table, average levels for recent years have been included.

Country Notes >