[USA] GAO warns of growing threats to U.S hydropower

On March 30, 2023, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report finding that four power marketing administrations (PMAs)—Bonneville Power Administration, Southeastern Power Administration (SEPA), Southwestern Power Administration (SWPA), and Western Area Power Administration (WAPA)—face increasing risks from climate change and must prepare for these vulnerabilities.[1] The four PMAs are run by the Department of Energy (DOE) and sell electricity generated from federal hydropower dams to public utilities, rural cooperatives, and Indian Tribes in over 30 states. These entities face risks to their operations, including reduced dam generation due to drought conditions and extreme heat, wildfires, and extreme storms. Reduced generation could raise power prices and reduce deliveries of low-emission hydroelectricity. Despite this, GAO found that two of the PMAs missed a DOE deadline to write assessments on the risks associated with climate change and develop plans to address them. WAPA and SEPA said that staffing issues contributed to the delay but that they would prepare them before the end of 2023.

[1] https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-23-106224?utm_campaign=usgao_email&utm_content=daybook&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery

[USA] EIA Report: California drought could halve summer hydropower generation

According to a study released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in May 2022, California’s extended drought could nearly halve its summer hydroelectric generation from 15% to 8%.[1] The study, titled “Short-Term Energy Outlook Supplement: Drought Effects on California Electricity Generation and Western Power Markets,” found that lower hydropower generation will bump up the state’s natural gas generation, leading to a 6% increase in carbon dioxide emissions from the state’s energy sector, and an average 5% increase in wholesale electricity prices across the region.

The state is currently in its third year of drought, and these conditions have impacted its hydropower resources, which is usually the state’s third largest source of electricity. Many of California’s reservoirs have low levels of storage at the moment; the two largest — Lake Shasta and Lake Oroville — were at 48% and 67% of historical storage averages, respectively, as of April 1, 2022. The EIA stated that hydroelectric generation in 2021 was 48% lower than the state’s 10-year average. These drought conditions come as the state transitions toward more clean sources of energy. The study notes that about 6.5 GW of natural gas units have been retired since 2015, while solar capacity has increased by 8.8 GW in that same period. Even accounting for added battery storage capacity, California’s total share of dispatchable resources is lower in 2022 than it was in 2015.

[1] https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/steo/special/supplements/2022/2022_sp_02.pdf

[Japan] Chugoku Electric Power and Chudenko Jointly Acquired Equity in a Taiwanese Independent Power Producer

Chugoku Electric Power (‎EnerGia, Headquarters: Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Pref.) and Chudenko Corporation (Headquarters: Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Pref.), EnerGia’s subsidiary that provides power facilities construction services, announced on March 9, 2021 that they have jointly acquired a 25 percent share of Feng Ping Power through their investment company, C&C Investment. Feng Ping Power is a Taiwanese independent power producer (IPP) that has been constructing the Feng Ping Xi hydropower station in Hualien County, Taiwan.

It is the second time EnerGia and Chudenko have jointly invested in an overseas IPP, and the first time for both firms to invest in an overseas hydroelectric power project[1]. The Feng Ping Xi hydropower station is scheduled to begin commercial operations in 2024 and its output is expected to 37.1MW. Taiwan Power (Headquarters: Taipei, Taiwan), a state-owned utility, will be a purchaser of the station’s power. The EnerGia Group will continue its efforts to advance the development of technologies that contribute towards carbon neutrality. [2]

[1] Meanwhile, this is the eight case for EnerGia to invest oversea power generation projects.

[2] https://www.energia.co.jp/press/2021/13019.html