IHA Chair, Anton-Louis Olivier signs off the year with a list of some of the 2023 highlights for the sustainable hydropower community.

“It has been a momentous year for the International Hydropower Association (IHA) and its efforts to advance sustainable hydropower’s role in the energy transition. We have seen significant strides across the world aimed at progressing sustainable hydropower development and we need to increase this momentum if we want to reach the 1.5°C scenario.  

We need to double the installed capacity of hydropower globally. That means building as much in the next two decades as we’ve built in the last 120 years. The key questions moving forward that need to be addressed are what are the priority markets, what are the priority countries, what countries are ahead, where is the potential and where should we focus? The World Hydropower Outlook outlined some of these questions and I look forward to seeing the steps we can take to promote and build the sustainable hydropower we need in 2024 and the years to come.

Ten milestones in 2023 are listed below to highlight the work that’s been done. From a personal standpoint, becoming Chair of the IHA was a great honour and I am excited to work with our board and members to keep up and even enhance the momentum of 2023.”

February - IHA hosts roundtable for Latin American governments and companies in Rio, where IRENA launched its report highlighting hydropower as one of the cheapest sources of electricity

The roundtable in Rio, Brazil, was co-hosted by the IDB and IHA

The Latin American and Caribbean roundtable was co-hosted by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the International Hydropower Association (IHA) and included 44 participants from 19 countries.  

It explored the incentives and regulations that would be required to ensure that enough investment is attracted for sustainable hydropower to play its full role in reliably decarbonising power grids in the region. 

Marcelino Madrigal, Energy Division Chief at IDB, highlighted the opportunity for hydropower: “Socially and environmentally-sound built hydroelectricity must play an important role in Latin America, complementing in a sustainable way the insertion of wind and solar energy. With these three elements, together with greater regional integration, Latin America and the Caribbean can reach the goal of 70% renewable electricity by 2030.”

IRENA’s “The Changing Role of Hydropower: Challenges and Opportunities” report was launched at the event. It highlighted hydropower as one of the cheapest sources of electricity – and stressed the need for most hydropower assets, built several decades ago, to be upgraded.

The report underscored that most hydropower potential lies in developing countries. Financial institutions must work in tandem with governments to overcome local risks and funnel much-needed investment into these regions and countries.

The full report can be read here.

March - Sebzor (Tajikistan) becomes the first Hydropower Sustainability Certified Project

Pamir Energy’s Sebzor project in Tajikistan

In March, Pamir Energy’s Sebzor hydropower project in Tajikistan was announced as the world’s first project to be certified against the Hydropower Sustainability Standard.  

The Hydropower Sustainability Standard is the hydropower sector’s independent sustainability certification scheme, which accredits hydropower projects that meet and exceed good practice in a wide range of sustainability topics.

On receiving the certification, Amrikhon Raimov, General Director of Pamir Energy, said: “We are proud to be leading the way in sustainable hydropower development in Tajikistan and beyond. As part of our efforts in continuing to achieve the highest standards of sustainability, we are now already working towards obtaining the Gold certification against the Hydropower Sustainability Standard. Sebzor is just the beginning of our journey to provide clean, reliable and affordable energy while protecting the environment and supporting the communities we serve.”

Sebzor was one of the first recipients of the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs’ Hydropower ESG Assessment Fund, which aims to promote sustainable hydropower development by supporting the assessment of environmental, social and governance risks and opportunities.

June – Inaugural World Hydropower Outlook launched

The World Hydropower Outlook

June saw the release of the inaugural World Hydropower Outlook. The publication sets out a roadmap for sustainable hydropower to support other renewables to deliver on net zero targets.  

The Outlook’s key findings included that 2022 marked the first time since 2016 that more than 30 GW of hydropower came online, including 10 GW of pumped storage – with hydropower currently providing more than 15% of the world's electricity.  

The publication set out three key policy recommendations:

• Incentivise sustainable hydropower development through financial and market mechanisms that reward flexibility.
• Accelerate the development of renewables through streamlined permitting and licensing.  
• Embed hydropower sustainability practices in government regulation.

More than 6,000 people have downloaded the Outlook so far this year.  

Read the Outlook here.  

August – Malcolm Turnbull announced as IHA’s new President

IHA President Malcolm Turnbull speaks at the World Hydropower Congress

Australia’s former Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, was appointed as the President-Designate of the International Hydropower Association, replacing Roger Gill, who held the position since 2019.

During his time as Prime Minister, he announced the construction of Snowy Hydro 2.0, the biggest pumped hydro scheme in the southern hemisphere. He is also Chair of the Green Hydrogen Organisation and was Co-Chair of the IHA-hosted International Forum on Pumped Storage Hydropower.

On his appointment Mr Turnbull said: “The stakes have never been higher. The world is on a catastrophic path to a 2.7°C increase in global warming. This is far beyond the 1.5°C limit that was agreed by the international community as part of the 2015 Paris Agreement.  

“Renewables are key to addressing this challenge. We do not need new technologies; we have the tools to do the job now. It is a matter of political will and choice. Hydropower is the largest renewable and has the additional advantage of backing up solar and wind when the sun doesn’t shine and wind doesn’t blow. So, I am delighted to be taking up this role.”

September – Sustainable and Renewable Energy Forum (SAREF 3.0) Conference held in Kuching, Sarawak

Eddie Rich speaking at the SAREF 3.0 event in Sarawak

The biennial SAREF 3.0 event took place in Sarawak, Malaysia. It brought together leaders, policy makers, academics, civil societies and the media to talk about renewable energy and actionable solutions to build a more sustainable energy future for Southeast Asia.

The conference witnessed the launch of the Asian section of the World Hydropower Outlook, with renewable energy's critical role in the transition to net zero by 2050 a key point of discussion.

Dame Christiana Figueres was the keynote speaker. As Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Dame Christiana brought nearly 200 countries together as parties to the Paris Agreement in 2015.

October – Hydropower community came together for Global Hydropower Day

Frankie celebrates all we can do #WithHydropower on Global Hydropower Day

On 11 October, Global Hydropower Day (GHD) 2023 brought the global community together to celebrate sustainable hydropower.

It saw activity in 33 different countries, with more than 25 members sharing activities related to GHD. Countries that celebrated included Canada, China, Germany, India, Malaysia, Nigeria, Romania, Tajikistan and the US.

The hydropower mascot ‘Frankie’ provided a recognisable gateway into the importance of hydropower and its role in a renewable energy mix. Frankie then played a prominent role in the World Hydropower Congress.

Posts on the day had a reach of more than two million, impressions of 4.35 million and views of 515,000 (twice the inaugural event in 2022) – with an estimated editorial audience reach (excluding social media) of close to 205,000.

October/November – World Hydropower Congress opened by Joko Widodo, President of Indonesia

Leaders in hydropower join President Joko Widodo at the opening ceremony of the World Hydropower Congress

The 2023 World Hydropower Congress was the most important gathering of high-level stakeholders to discuss hydropower yet.  

In the lead-up to COP28, the Congress set the platform for the role of sustainable hydropower within the global climate debate. It sent a clear message that sustainable hydropower must be the backbone of national strategies to build thriving, low carbon economies bolstered by clean, renewable energy.  

President Joko Widodo opened the event by highlighting the importance of hydropower in Indonesia’s plans for renewables-powered industrial growth. He said: “I hope the World Hydropower Congress will help with international collaboration for sustainable hydropower to help develop a sustainable green global economy.”

The Congress also saw the launch of the Hydropower Sustainability Alliance, the Bali Statement on Powering Sustainable Growth – with key recommendations from the hydropower community – as well as former Prime Minister of Australia Malcolm Turnbull becoming President of the International Hydropower Association (IHA).

The event brought together more than 1,000 participants from over 50 countries, more than 30 sessions with over 200 high-level speakers. The event reached more than 40 million people online.

October – The Hydropower Sustainability Alliance launched

The launch of the Hydropower Sustainability Alliance is celebrated at the World Hydropower Congress

The hydropower sector took a crucial step forward, with the launch of the Hydropower Sustainability Alliance (HSA) at the World Hydropower Congress. It acts as the independent and multistakeholder standard-setting body, overseeing the Hydropower Sustainability Certification.

Dr Ashok Khosla, President of the HAS, commented: “I am excited to be part of taking the next step as president of the HSA. The Alliance will bring greater attention to the need for credible systems to incentivise the best projects. Providing communities, governments and investors greater confidence in their net benefits and how impacts on the local environment can be mitigated.”

November – International community sets new ambition for hydropower to enable sustainable growth

The Bali Statement on Powering Sustainable Growth

The Bali Statement on Powering Sustainable Growth was released at the World Hydropower Congress 2023 in Bali, Indonesia.  

It states that sustainable hydropower must be the backbone of national strategies to build thriving, low carbon economies bolstered by clean, renewable energy.

“The industrial revolution was powered by water. Water, wind and sun together will power the sustainable growth of the future.”

This is the key message of the Bali Statement, which following an open public consultation, provided four recommendations to policymakers to ensure this necessary collaboration can take place.  

These were: Planning for future energy needs, incentivising sustainable hydropower development through financial and market-based mechanisms, accelerating the development of renewables through transparent and efficient permitting and licensing processes and incorporating hydropower sustainability practices into government regulation and financial sector obligations.  

The full statement is available to download here.  

November/December – Hydropower has its highest event profile at a COP

IHA President Malcolm Turnbull holds a discussion with Al Gore at COP28 in Dubai

The IHA is a founding member of the Global Renewable Alliance (GRA) – the unified renewable energy voice. Together, the GRA successfully campaigned for the adoption of a commitment to triple renewable energy to 11,000 GW by 2030 in the COP Statement. Malcolm Turnbull led the IHA delegation with over 50 bilateral meetings with Heads of State, Ministers, senior officials from banks and influencers like King Charles of the United Kingdom, Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States, Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft and Baroness Scotland of the Commonwealth, among others.  

The IHA also hosted many events including:

• Powering Sustainable Growth: the Bali Statement on Hydropower  
• The crisis within the crisis: the need for long duration energy storage  
• Sustainable Hydropower: A Global Standard for Positive Impact  

In addition, IHA representatives spoke at 10 other events including a session at the Indonesian Pavilion on the Bali Statement and at the Tajikistan Pavilion on the Nexus and Hydropower Climate Services.

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The IHA team at the World Hydropower Congress in Bali, Indonesia

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Best wishes from all at IHA for the festive period.

Anton-Louis Olivier, IHA Chair