Released July 25, 2013 | DENVER, COLORADO
en
Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The U.S. hydroelectric business has a perception problem, speakers and attendees at the HydroVision International 2013 said on Tuesday in Denver. These negative perceptions are in the process of being reversed, industry participants agreed, but progress won't be easy and it won't happen overnight.
"The old view of hydro is that it is a mature technology, all of the best resources have been taken, and that it kills a lot of fish," said Linda Church Ciocci, executive director of the National Hydropower Association (NHA) (Washington, D.C.), in an interview with Industrial Info at the conference. "The new view on hydro is just the opposite--there are exciting technological innovations, all the best sites are not taken, and fish populations are thriving where mitigation measures have been implemented."
With about 2,900 registrants, HydroVision officials said this was the world's largest hydroelectric event. Last year's conference drew about 2,000 attendees. The Denver event features more than 400 speakers and 322 exhibitors representing more than 50 countries.
NHA's Ciocci told Industrial Info that the U.S. has about 100,000 megawatts (MW) of installed hydroelectric generating capacity, a sum that counts pumped storage. "Hydroelectric generation accounts for more than 60% of all renewable generation, and about 8% of overall U.S. electric generating capacity, she told Industrial Info. "In the U.S., there is as much as 60,000 MW of new hydro that can be economically built, mostly by constructing new pumped storage facilities and adding hydroelectric generators to the tens of thousands of existing dams that lack generators."
The U.S. has about 80,000 dams, but only 3% of those dams have electric generators, speakers at the conference said. Most U.S. dams were built for flood-control purposes in the first half of the 20th century.
As with so many other forms of electric generation, the industry feels held back by regulation. "The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) (Washington, D.C.) is sitting on an historic number of hydropower license and relicensing applications--about 50,000 MW worth," Ciocci told Industrial Info.
Ciocci told conference attendees she was "not hopeful" that a federal renewable portfolio standard (RPS) would be enacted any time soon. "I see that as having a slim-to-none chance in the near term," she told an estimated 1,500 attendees at the conference's opening session. "Low natural gas prices are affecting the value proposition of hydro. Natural gas prices are driving a lot of federal energy policy."
Ciocci encouraged the hydroelectric industry to redouble its efforts to lobby legislators, regulators and even traditional opponents on the merits of hydroelectricity. The NHA leader noted that earlier this year the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed legislation to streamline the hydroelectric regulatory process. That legislation awaits a Senate vote. Attendees here said anything that passes the normally fractious House unanimously ought to pass the Senate easily and win presidential approval.
Another HydroVision speaker, John Esler, president of the Northwest Hydroelectric Association, told attendees that there has been a resurgence of interest in hydroelectric generation in his region. The rebound is being driven by the need to rehabilitate and relicense existing hydro dams, as well as the prospect of building small hydro generation. Oregon floated energy bonds to help finance hydroelectric projects, he added.
Agreeing that hydroelectricity needs a perception reboot, Esler said TV ads are running in the Northeast on how hydroelectricity contributes to a healthy regional economy. "Our industry has had a bit of a bad rap as salmon killers, and these ads are part of an effort to change that," he said in an interview at the conference. "We need to remind people of the value they get from the Northwestern river system. The ads are starting to make a difference."
Esler and others complained that some state RPS programs don't count hydroelectricity produced by large generators or from refurbished existing generators. "We need to have full recognition of rehabilitated hydro in state RPS programs," he told the conference.
Another conference speaker, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, recommended attendees keep trying to collaborate with other interest groups, including ones that traditionally have opposed hydro projects. "Here in Colorado and the West, we have a strong history and practice of collaboration," he said. "It's not something you necessarily see in other areas. Hydropower can serve as a model of collaboration for utilities, developers, communities and government agencies."
"Dams are somewhat controversial in the West," Hickenlooper acknowledged. "There are some in the environmental community that don't want to see any dams at all." He said Colorado is seeking a winning consensus by emphasizing small hydro rather than large projects. "I don't expect you'll see any massive dam projects in Colorado in the near future," he told attendees. "But we have to work together to overcome government red tape and take some of the friction out of this business."
"Hydroelectricity has great potential to help us with storage that backs up other forms of renewable energy," he continued. "If we can get local, state and federal governmental agencies working together, the industry will find it easier to access capital." At the federal level, where most hydroelectric licensing takes place, "we don't have the luxury of dilly-dallying around."
Another conference speaker, John Irving, president of the Canadian Hydropower Association, said the best way for the industry to secure its place in the U.S. energy mix while also fixing its perception problems is to "under-promise and over-deliver operationally. The Canadian provinces that have the largest amount of hydroelectricity also have the lowest rates. Hydro is the best way to offset the variability of natural gas prices." About 60% of Canada's electric generating capacity is hydroelectric, he added.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
"The old view of hydro is that it is a mature technology, all of the best resources have been taken, and that it kills a lot of fish," said Linda Church Ciocci, executive director of the National Hydropower Association (NHA) (Washington, D.C.), in an interview with Industrial Info at the conference. "The new view on hydro is just the opposite--there are exciting technological innovations, all the best sites are not taken, and fish populations are thriving where mitigation measures have been implemented."
With about 2,900 registrants, HydroVision officials said this was the world's largest hydroelectric event. Last year's conference drew about 2,000 attendees. The Denver event features more than 400 speakers and 322 exhibitors representing more than 50 countries.
NHA's Ciocci told Industrial Info that the U.S. has about 100,000 megawatts (MW) of installed hydroelectric generating capacity, a sum that counts pumped storage. "Hydroelectric generation accounts for more than 60% of all renewable generation, and about 8% of overall U.S. electric generating capacity, she told Industrial Info. "In the U.S., there is as much as 60,000 MW of new hydro that can be economically built, mostly by constructing new pumped storage facilities and adding hydroelectric generators to the tens of thousands of existing dams that lack generators."
The U.S. has about 80,000 dams, but only 3% of those dams have electric generators, speakers at the conference said. Most U.S. dams were built for flood-control purposes in the first half of the 20th century.
As with so many other forms of electric generation, the industry feels held back by regulation. "The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) (Washington, D.C.) is sitting on an historic number of hydropower license and relicensing applications--about 50,000 MW worth," Ciocci told Industrial Info.
Ciocci told conference attendees she was "not hopeful" that a federal renewable portfolio standard (RPS) would be enacted any time soon. "I see that as having a slim-to-none chance in the near term," she told an estimated 1,500 attendees at the conference's opening session. "Low natural gas prices are affecting the value proposition of hydro. Natural gas prices are driving a lot of federal energy policy."
Ciocci encouraged the hydroelectric industry to redouble its efforts to lobby legislators, regulators and even traditional opponents on the merits of hydroelectricity. The NHA leader noted that earlier this year the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed legislation to streamline the hydroelectric regulatory process. That legislation awaits a Senate vote. Attendees here said anything that passes the normally fractious House unanimously ought to pass the Senate easily and win presidential approval.
Another HydroVision speaker, John Esler, president of the Northwest Hydroelectric Association, told attendees that there has been a resurgence of interest in hydroelectric generation in his region. The rebound is being driven by the need to rehabilitate and relicense existing hydro dams, as well as the prospect of building small hydro generation. Oregon floated energy bonds to help finance hydroelectric projects, he added.
Agreeing that hydroelectricity needs a perception reboot, Esler said TV ads are running in the Northeast on how hydroelectricity contributes to a healthy regional economy. "Our industry has had a bit of a bad rap as salmon killers, and these ads are part of an effort to change that," he said in an interview at the conference. "We need to remind people of the value they get from the Northwestern river system. The ads are starting to make a difference."
Esler and others complained that some state RPS programs don't count hydroelectricity produced by large generators or from refurbished existing generators. "We need to have full recognition of rehabilitated hydro in state RPS programs," he told the conference.
Another conference speaker, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, recommended attendees keep trying to collaborate with other interest groups, including ones that traditionally have opposed hydro projects. "Here in Colorado and the West, we have a strong history and practice of collaboration," he said. "It's not something you necessarily see in other areas. Hydropower can serve as a model of collaboration for utilities, developers, communities and government agencies."
"Dams are somewhat controversial in the West," Hickenlooper acknowledged. "There are some in the environmental community that don't want to see any dams at all." He said Colorado is seeking a winning consensus by emphasizing small hydro rather than large projects. "I don't expect you'll see any massive dam projects in Colorado in the near future," he told attendees. "But we have to work together to overcome government red tape and take some of the friction out of this business."
"Hydroelectricity has great potential to help us with storage that backs up other forms of renewable energy," he continued. "If we can get local, state and federal governmental agencies working together, the industry will find it easier to access capital." At the federal level, where most hydroelectric licensing takes place, "we don't have the luxury of dilly-dallying around."
Another conference speaker, John Irving, president of the Canadian Hydropower Association, said the best way for the industry to secure its place in the U.S. energy mix while also fixing its perception problems is to "under-promise and over-deliver operationally. The Canadian provinces that have the largest amount of hydroelectricity also have the lowest rates. Hydro is the best way to offset the variability of natural gas prices." About 60% of Canada's electric generating capacity is hydroelectric, he added.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
