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Let it flow: HYDROVISION keynote kicks off 30th anniversary of the hydropower event

Denver Water’s Tom Roode and DOE hydropower program manager Corey Vezina set the table for the 30th anniversary edition of HYDROVISION.
Let it flow: HYDROVISION keynote kicks off 30th anniversary of the hydropower event
(Hydropower program manager Corey Vezina of the Department of Energy delivers his ketnote address at the 30th edition of HYDROVISION in Denver, Colorado.)

By Paul Gerke

HYDROVISION celebrates three decades years of learning, networking, and innovation

Thirty years is a long time for anything to last. Try to play one of your old CDs (or even find a place to do so) for a stark reminder of how quickly technology and trends can leave the old “it” thing in the dust.

Hydropower, however, has staying power.

The more-than-140-year-old industry is not only surviving, but finding ways to thrive as it enters a new era of modernized equipment and distributed energy resources connecting multiple sources of renewable generation and storage.

HYDROVISION International, the foremost global assembly of hydropower and dams/civil market experts, has been an integral part of the industry since its inaugural event in 1994. On Wednesday, the event celebrated its 30th anniversary with a keynote program featuring remarks from Tom Roode, the chief of operations and maintenance at Denver Water, and Corey Vezina, the hydropower program manager for the U.S. Department of Energy.

Roode is a Colorado native, receiving his bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University and his master’s from the University of Colorado at Denver. He opened his speech by extolling the virtues of his home state, warning attendees “as a water guy” to stay hydrated when exploring outdoor recreational areas.

“If you’re going to run it to failure, make sure to at least put a little of our Rocky Mountain water in your whiskey at the reception,” joked Roode. Denver Water is the host utility for this year’s HYDROVISION event.

Roode spoke of challenges he faces, including the availability of water in the West, long lead time compared to other renewables, timing and availability of parts, and skilled resources for maintenance.

“Hydropower ties into our sustainability goals not just because it’s the right thing to do but because it could be affecting the climate and what our situation is,” he explained.

Denver Water uses less than 2% of the state’s water but serves around one-quarter of Colorado’s population. Its water supply comes from snowmelt in the Rocky Mountains, which feeds the South Platte and Colorado Rivers, comprising a roughly 4,000 square-mile watershed area. Denver receives only about 15 inches of precipitation each year, making that big snow blanket more like a reservoir.

Roode touched on the sustainability ethos baked into his organization and highlighted growth opportunities including the diversification of energy generation sources, operator/training skills development, leveraging partnerships to address zero carbon goals, and pairing water power with other renewables. By 2050, hydropower will comprise 14% of the world’s electricity generation and could reach 850 GW total capacity, increasing generation by as much as 20%.

“We’re excited to be sponsoring the 30th HYDROVISION, and we hope you enjoy your stay in Denver and the state of Colorado,” he concluded.

DOE’s hydropower program manager Corey Vezina took the keynote stage next, highlighting his mission statement within the Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), which aims to conduct research, development, demonstration, and commercial activities to advance transformative, cost-effective, reliable, and environmentally sustainable hydropower and pumped storage technologies.

The Hydropower Program seeks to better understand and capitalize upon opportunities for these technologies in support of the nation’s rapidly evolving grid, while also improving energy-water infrastructure and security.

“We work with the Department of Energy’s national labs to support our research,” Vezina explained, referencing a field trip dozens of HYDROVISION attendees took to NREL yesterday.

Vezina went over industry growth, noting conventional hydropower capacity increased by 2.1 GW from 2010 to 2022. Pumped storage capacity increased by 1.4 GW over the past decade; the U.S. currently has 43 pump storage plants with 553 GWh of storage capacity.

COVID-related supply chain issues have put blocks on further development, but Vezina is encouraged by increased hybrid plant configurations with batteries.

“This is a promising trend for hydropower in the future,” Vezina believes.

One challenge to consider, he says, is the age of a lot of hydro infrastructure. WPTO has looked intensively at fleet upgrades and modernization, in addition to funding tools to streamline information and make the licensing process easier to manage for developers.

“While there are challenges facing hydropower, we know shoring up our fleet is essential to support renewable energy growth,” he stated.

He says WPTO has three focus areas: defining new markets for hydro, providing insights for investments and loan programs, and looking at defining existing hydropower manufacturing facilities. The office launched a hydropower collegiate competition in 2022, sowing seeds for the next generation of industry leaders.

“As we continue this workforce development, our hope is that WPTO will support the hydropower industry through this transitionary period to support a stronger workforce in the sector,” Vezina added.

2024 Hydro Hall of Fame inductees

The HYDROVISION keynote program included its 28th class of Hall of Fame inductees. Four historic projects were recognized, narrowed down from about 200 potentially eligible plants worldwide. This year’s inductees are:

The Bishop Creek Hydroelectric Project, owned and operated by Southern California Edison Company and located on Bishop Creek, Middle Fork Creek, South Fork Creek, Birch Creek, McGee Creek, and Green Creek near the community of Bishop in the Owens Valley along the base of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Inyo County, California;

The Ephraim Hydropower Facility, a small but effective Utah site, which was completed in 1906;

The Harriman Development, a 41 MW capacity station located on the Deerfield River in Wilmington, Whitingham, and Readsboro, Vermont, and managed as part of the Deerfield River Hydroelectric Project; and

The Walchensee Powerplant, Germany’s oldest and most powerful high-pressure storage power plant run by Uniper Kraftwerke.