hydropower

InternationalHydropower2025Hydropower

2025

World

HydropowerOutlook

Opportunitiestoadvancenetzero

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Celebratingthreedecadesofprogress,partnershipandpurpose#IHA30

2025WorldHydropowerOutlookInternationalHydropowerAssociation

Supportedby:

HYDRO

GRID

V。TH

Coverphotograph

UpperReservoirofChanglongshanpumpedstorageproject,China

Credit:CTG

Contentsphotograph

Aldeadávilahydropowerproject,SpainCredit:Iberdrola

2

3

InternationalHydropowerAssociation2025WorldHydropowerOutlook

Contents

Introduction

4

Foreword:

MalcolmTurnbull 4

Executivesummary 5

Globaloverview 9

Pipelineanalysis 10

Hydropowerinnumbers 16

Theroleofhydropowerinaneraoflowenergyprices 17

Topics 21

Pumpedstoragehydropower:investinginsystemresilience 22

Climate 26

Hydropowerinachangingclimate:challengesandopportunities 26

Understandingandmanagingreservoiremissions 29

ThegrowingroleoftheHydropowerSustainabilityStandard 32

Globaltrends 35

NorthandCentralAmerica 41

SouthAmerica 49

Europe 57

Africa 65

SouthandCentralAsia 73

EastAsiaandPacific 83

Installedcapacityandgeneration2024 92

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2025WorldHydropowerOutlook|IntroductionInternationalHydropowerAssociation

Foreword

MalcolmTurnbull,IHAPresident

Hydropowerisplayinganincreasinglyvitalroleintheglobalenergytransition.Astheworld’slargestsourceofrenewableelectricity,itdeliversnotonlycleanenergybut

alsotheflexibility,reliabilityandresilienceneededtosupportpowersystemsthatareincreasinglydependentonvariablesourceslikewindandsolar.Encouragingly,thisyear’sWorldHydropowerOutlookshowsthatnewcapacityisacceleratingafterseveralyearsofstagnation.

Whileweareseeingstrongprogressonpumpedstoragehydropower,particularlyinChina,India,EuropeandAustralia,itisclearthatthemarketalonewillnotdeliver.Continuedmomentumwillrequireboldpolicyaction,includingreformstorewardhydropower’smultiplebenefits,andfasterpermitting.

Pumpedstoragehydropower(PSH)isontheriseglobally,andrightlyso.Asthemostprovenandscalableformoflong-durationenergystorage,itisessentialtodeliver

theflexibilityandreliabilitythatmodernelectricitysystemsrequire.Asvariablerenewablesgrow,pumpedstoragewillbecomeincreasinglycriticaltobalancingsupplyanddemand.

Theprivatesectorstandsreadytodeliver–butitcannotdosoalone.Governmentsmustensurethatmarketframeworksandpolicysupportarefitforpurpose.Clearinvestmentsignalsareneededtoexpandtheprojectpipelineandaccelerate

constructiontimelines.

Andinthefaceofgrowingclimatevolatility,wemustbuildnotjustcleanenergysystems,butresilientones.Hydropower,whendevelopedsustainably,isuniquelyplacedtosupportcommunitiesduringdroughtsandfloods,actingasastrategicwaterresourcewhilealsoreducingemissions.

Thisyear,aswecelebrateour30thanniversary,IHAwillcontinuetopushformarketandpolicyreform,fostercollaborationacrossthediversespectrumofstakeholdersinvolvedinhydropower,andchampionsustainablepracticesglobally.Wewillalsodeepenourregionalpresencetosupportlocalstakeholders,whilescalingupourfocusonpumpedstoragethroughcrucialinitiativessuchastheGlobalAllianceforPumpedStorageandthe#Pumpedforpowercampaign.

TheupcomingInternationalForumonPumpedStorageHydropowerinParisthisSeptemberwillbeapivotalmoment–bringingtogethergovernments,industryleadersandinnovatorstochartaclearcourseforthescale-upoflong-durationenergystorage.Water,windandsungetsthejobdone.Theonlyresourcewe

lackistime.

MalcolmTurnbull

IHAPresident

InternationalHydropowerAssociation2025WorldHydropowerOutlook|Introduction

Executivesummary

4,578TWhElectricitygeneratedfomhydropowerin2024

~10%

increasefrom2023

1,443GW

Hydopowerinstalled

capacityreachedin2024

+1.7%

on2023

24.6GW

Capacityaddedin2024,includingpumpedstorage

upon

22GW

addedin2023

189GW

Pumpedstorageinstalledcapacityreachedin2024

+5%

on2023

8.4GW

Pumpedstoragecapacityaddedin2024

upon

6.5GW

addedin2023

Alpaslanhydropower

project,Türkiye

Credit:Energo-Pro

Hydropowerdevelopmentin2024continuedonanupwardtrajectory,withpositivesignalsemerging,particularlyforpumpedstorage.Atotalof24.6GWofhydropowercapacitywasaddedin2024–astrongperformancedespiteongoingchallenges.

Globalhydropowergenerationincreasedbyapproximately10%in2024,reboundingfrom4,180TWhin2023to4,578TWh,despitesignificantdroughtconditionsinLatin

AmericaandsouthernAfrica.Thisgrowthillustratesthesector’sresilience,butalso

highlightsincreasingclimate-drivenvariability,whichisexpectedtoshapeyear-to-yearperformance.

The2024totalincluded8.4GWofPSH–longconsideredthe“waterbattery”ofthe

energysector.ThisbroughtglobalPSHcapacityto189GW,markinga5%year-on-

yearincreaseandsignallinganacceleratingtrend:annualPSHadditionshavenearlydoubledinjusttwoyears.In2024,conventional*hydropoweradded16.2GW,slightlybelowthefive-yearaverageof20GWperyear,butstilldemonstratingsteadyprogress–particularlyinEastAsia,SouthandCentralAsia,andAfrica.

TheGlobalEnergyStorageandGridsPledge,signedby58countriesatCOP29,furtherreinforcedPSH’scriticalrole.Withpumpedstoragealreadyaccountingformorethan

90%oftheworld’senergystorage,thepledgetodeploy1,500GWofstorageby2030highlightstheurgency,andopportunity,forfurtherhydropowergrowth.

Whilethisreporthighlightsthegrowingroleofpumpedstorageinbalancingenergysystemswithrisingsharesofvariablerenewables,italsoreaffirmsthatallformsof

hydropowerremainessentialtoachievingglobalclimateanddevelopmentgoals.

WhilematuremarketsareleaningheavilytowardPSHtoenhanceflexibilityandgridstability,manydevelopingregionsareinvestinginlarge-scaleconventionalprojectstomeetbasicenergyaccess,fostereconomicdevelopmentandreducerelianceonfossilfuels.

Asthismomentumcontinues,itisessentialthatallfuturehydropowerisdevelopedsustainably,guidedbyinternationalgoodpracticeandrobustsustainability

frameworkssuchastheHydropowerSustainabilityStandard–sothatitsbenefitsaredeliveredresponsibly,equitablyandinharmonywithcommunitiesandecosystems.Thisyear,IHAputeffortintorenewingourviewofthepipelineofprojectsin

development,particularlyPSH.Asof2024,theglobalhydropowerdevelopment

pipelinetotalsaround1,075GW–includingapproximately600GWofPSHand475GWofconventionalprojects–reflectingboththerisingmomentumbehindelectricity

*IHAdefinesconventionalhydropowerasrun-of-riverandreservoirnotequippedwithpumpingcapacity

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2025WorldHydropowerOutlook|IntroductionInternationalHydropowerAssociation

storageandtheenduringimportanceofconventionalhydropowerinbuildinglow-

carbonenergysystems.TheriseinPSHcapacityunderdevelopmentisparticularly

striking.ThereisnearlythreetimesasmuchPSHcapacitybeingdevelopedthanwhenwelastreportedonthepipelinein2023.

Chinacontinuestodominateglobalhydropowerdevelopment,with14.4GWofnewcapacityaddedin2024,including7.75GWofPSH.Withmorethan91GWofPSHunderconstruction,thecountryissettoexceedits120GWPSHtargetfor2030.Withafurther136GWofPSHcapacitymovingforward,Chinaislikelytoacceleratedeployment

beyond2030.

ElsewhereacrossEastAsiaandOceania,governmentsareembeddinghydropowerandPSHintolong-termplanstoimprovegridstability,energysecurityandrenewableintegration.Australia,Vietnam,thePhilippines,LaosandChinaareadvancingnew

projectsandrefiningregulatoryframeworks,whileMalaysiaandIndonesiaareexploringhybridhydro-solarmodels.

Africadoubledits2023total,addingmorethan4.1GWofconventionalcapacity.

Hydropoweralreadydelivers20%oftotalelectricitygeneration,andthereishuge

scopeforfurtherdevelopment,withonlyasmallfractionoftheover600GWof

continent’spotentialcurrentlyharnessed.Anewwaveofprojects,manyledbyprivatedevelopers,isbeginningtoemerge,positioninghydropowerasacorepillarofAfrica’scleanenergytransition.

Flagshipprojectsreachedkeymilestones,includingTanzania’sJuliusNyereprojectbeginningoperations,theGrandEthiopianRenaissanceDamadding800MWwithitsthirdandfourthunits,andUganda’s600MWKarumaandCameroon’s420MWNachtigalplantsbeingfullycommissioned.However,financingforhydropower

projectsinAfricaremainsachallenge.

InEurope,drivenbyambitiousenergyandclimatepolicies,renewablegenerationis

progressivelygrowing.In2024,hydropower,windandsolarwere,attimes,theprimarycontributorstotheEUpowersystem.Hydropowergenerationreachedadecade-highof680TWh,drivenbystrongprecipitation.Ongoinggeopoliticalshiftsandgrowing

curtailmentofvariablepowerplantsareincreasingtheneedforflexiblegenerationandelectricitystorage.Aclearbusinesscaseforpumpedstorageisemerging,supported

byaEuropeanprojectpipelineof52.9GWindevelopment.Ofthis,3GWisunderconstructionand6.7GWhasalreadyreceivedregulatoryapproval.

InNorthandCentralAmerica,thefocusisonmodernisinglegacyinfrastructureandpursuingnewprojects,reinforcinghydropowerasamaturecontributortotheregion’srenewableenergylandscape.Canada,theUSandCentralAmericaallsawincreasesininvestment.

Despiteamodesttotalcapacityadditionof306MWin2024,hydropowerprovides

approximately45%ofSouthAmerica’selectricitydemand.Around30%oftheregion’shydropowerpotentialisbeingutilised.Asrenewableenergydeploymentaccelerates,sotoodoesthechallengeofmaintaininggridstabilityamidvariablegeneration

andincreasing,butfluctuating,demand.However,hydropowercontinuestoface

reputationalchallengesintheregion.Theindustryisrespondingwithastrongfocusondemonstratingsustainability.Inthepastyear,Brazil’s198MWMascarenhasplantwascertifiedGoldundertheHydropowerSustainabilityStandard,whileColombia’s2.45GWItuangoand19.9MWChorreritasprojectswerecertifiedSilver.ThisfollowsBrazil’s

3.75GWJirauplantachievingGoldcertificationthepreviousyear.

InSouthandCentralAsia,Indiaremainsanimportantdriverofdevelopment,with132hydropowerprojectsatvariousstages.Progressintheregionisincreasingly

underpinnedbycross-bordercooperation,withtradeagreementsandjoint

infrastructureinitiativesgainingmomentum,includingbetweencountriespreviouslyinvolvedindecades-longconflicts.Lookingahead,inaregionfacinggrowing

climateextremesandpoliticaluncertainty,sustainablehydropoweroffersapowerfulopportunitytostrengthenwatersecurity,enhanceclimateresilience,andprovideastablefoundationforlong-termdevelopment.

Overall,2024reaffirmedhydropower’sessentialroleintheglobalcleanenergy

transition.Ascountriesstrivetomeetclimateandenergytargets,hydropowerstandsoutnotonlyasasourceofrenewableelectricitygeneration,butforitsflexibility,

storagecapacityandbroadercontributionstowatermanagement,agricultureand

climateresilience.Realisingitsfullpotential,however,willrequireconcertedefforts

tostreamlinepermitting,enhanceinvestmentenvironmentsandexpandthesector’sskilledworkforce.Withgrowingpoliticalalignmentandtechnologicalmomentum,theoutlookforhydropowerisincreasinglybright.

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InternationalHydropowerAssociation2025WorldHydropowerOutlook|Introduction

ThismomentumcomesasIHAmarksits30thanniversaryin2025–amilestonethathighlightsboththeprogressthesectorhasmadeandthechallengesahead.Thenext30yearswillbedecisiveinaddressingtheworld’sclimateandenergychallenges.

Explorethecampaignat

/iha30

.

Methodology

Thedatapresentedinthisreporthavebeencontinuouslytrackedandupdatedto

accountfornewinformationinIHA’sglobalhydropowerdatabase,whichtracksmorethan13,000stationsinover150countries.Datawerecompiledbyateamofanalystsusinginformationsourcedfrom:

?Officialstatisticsfromgovernments,regulationagencies,transmissionnetworkoperatorsandassetowners

?Scientificarticlesandreports

?Dailynewsreportsinvolvinghydropowerplantdevelopment,officialdeclarationsofcontractsandequipmentdeals

?Directconsultationwithoperatorsandindustrysources.

Differentsourcesreportoncapacityandgenerationusingtheirownmethodologies.Forexample,somecountriesmaynotincludeoff-gridfacilities(hydropowerplantsnotconnectedtothemainelectricitygrid)intheirofficialstatistics,whileothersdo.WherepossibleIHAhasaccountedforthesedifferences–e.g.includingoff-gridfacilities–butsomeinconsistenciesmayremain.

Whengenerationdatafromprimarysourceswerenotavailable,estimateswere

preparedbasedonpreviousyearfigure,averagedcapacityfactorsandregional

meteorologicaldata.Forasmallnumberofcountries,capacitydatafrompreviousyearshavebeenrevisedwithupdatedinformation.Asaresult,somecountriesmayshow

yearon-yeardifferencescomparedtopreviousyears’reports.Theseupdatedcapacitynumbers,however,donotrepresentnewcapacityaddedorretiredin2024.

PubliclyavailableinformationonprojectshasbeensupplementedbyIHA’sownresearch.

Baihetanhydropowerstation,ChinaCredit:CTG

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8

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Joinworldleadersdeliveringhigh-levelactionthatshapesthefutureofenergystorageandcontributestotheglobalenergytransition

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InternationalHydropowerAssociation2025WorldHydropowerOutlook|Globaloverview

Globaloverview

Pocinhohydropowerproject,PortugalCredit:EDP

2025WorldHydropowerOutlook|GlobaloverviewInternationalHydropowerAssociation

Credit:TernaEnergy

PipelineanalysisAmfilochiapumpedstoragehydropowerproject

Hydropowerin2024:Statusandfuturetrends

Hydropowerremainstheworld’slargestsourceof

renewableelectricity,supplying14.3%ofglobal

powerandsupportinggridstabilityinmorethan150countries.In2024,thesectorexperiencedrenewedmomentum,particularlyinPSH.Thissectionofthe

WorldHydropowerOutlookassessesthecurrentstateofthesector,recentgrowth,andtheforwardpipelineforbothconventionalandPSH.Italsoexamines

regionaltrendsandthechallengesandopportunitiesthatlieahead.

Recentgrowthandinstalledcapacity

Totalglobalconventionalhydropowerinstalledcapacitygrewbyapproximately1%in2024,with16.2GWadded,bringingtotalglobalcapacityto

1,254GW.Thisissimilarto2023butremainsbelowthefive-yearrollingaverageof20GWperyear,whichhasheldsteadysince2019.

Meanwhile,PSHsawa5%increaseofthetotalglobalinstalledturbinecapacity,with8.4GWaddedin2024,bringingthetotalto189GW.AnnualPSHadditions

havenearlydoubledoverthepasttwoyears,raisingthefive-yearaverageto6GWperyear,upfrom2-4GWacrosstheprevioustwodecades.Thismarksanotableshiftforatechnologywithamuchsmallerinstalled

base,whereevenmodestadditionstranslateintoasignificantpercentageincreaseintotalcapacity.

Globalhydropowergenerationrosebyanestimated10%in2024toapproximately4,578TWh,upfrom

4,180TWhin2023,despitedroughtconditionsinLatinAmericaandsouthernAfrica.However,year-on-year

generationvariabilityisexpectedtoincreaseasclimatechangeimpactsintensify.See

pages26-28

foramoredetailedexplorationofthesetrends.

CurrentPipelineStatus

Theglobalhydropowerpipelineincludes

approximately600GWofpumpedstoragecapacityindevelopmentandjustover475GWofconventionalprojects.Theglobaldeploymentofconventional

hydropowerandPSHwillremainbroadlyalignedintheneartermbut,beyond2030,pumpedstorage

isexpectedtoleadintermsofnewcapacity.This

predictionissupportedbythelargerquantityof

capacityinthePSHpipelineandthefactthatthePSH

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InternationalHydropowerAssociation2025WorldHydropowerOutlook|Globaloverview

Conventionalhydropowercumulativecapacity

GW

1,500

1,200

900

600

300

0

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

Conventionalhydropowerannualadditionsandfive-yearrollingaverage

GW

50

40

30

20

10

0

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

Pumpedstoragehydropowercumulativecapacity

GW

1,500

1,200

900

600

300

0

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

Pumpedstoragehydropowerannualadditionsandfive-yearrollingaverage

50

40

30

GW

20

10

0

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

-10

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2025WorldHydropowerOutlook|GlobaloverviewInternationalHydropowerAssociation

pipelinehasnearlytripledinthelastfewyears.PSHcurrentlyexceedsconventionalhydropowerby88GWatthe‘a(chǎn)pproved’stageandby30GWatthe‘pendingapproval’stage,with‘a(chǎn)nnounced’volumesbroadly

comparable.

ConventionalHydropower

Around105GWiscurrentlyunderconstruction,withanother69GWapprovedbutnotyetstarted.Based

ontypicalprojecttimelines,mostoftheunder-

constructioncapacityisexpectedtobecommissionedby2030.Thisindicatesthatthebuildrateshould

remainaround20GWperyear,bringingtotalcapacitytoapproximately1,350GWby2030-anincreaseofapproximately8%.

However,thisfallsshortofthetrajectoryneeded

tomeettheCOP28‘triplingrenewables’target.In

addition,IHAprojectsashortfallof60-70GWin2030againstthetargetforhydropowersetoutbythe

MW

200,000

150,000

100,000

50,000

0

Conventionalcapacitypipeline

Northand

CentralAmerica

SouthAmerica

Europe

Africa

SouthandCentralAsia

EastAsiaandPaciic

Under

construction

Announced

Plannedregulatorapproved

12

Plannedpendingapproval

InternationalRenewableEnergyAgencyinitstriplingupscenario,unlessprojectapprovalsandconstructionareaccelerated.Thisalsoappliestodeliveryafter2030,wheretheprospectisofadeclineintherateofnew

commissioning.Atpresenttherearejustunder69GWofprojectsapprovedbutnotyetinconstruction,whichcouldbedeliveredintheperiod2030-35,dependingonfinancingprogress.Ifthisisdeliveredevenlyover

thefirsthalfofthe2030s,thenthiswouldrepresentadeclineindelivery,toabout15GWperyearofnewlycommissionedprojects.Additionalcapacitymust

thereforeprogressswiftlythroughthepipelinetoensuredeliveryismaint