How important is hydropower for Europe?

Hydropower is the oldest clean energy source with a very long history of use. Europe has a very long tradition in using hydro resources and hydropower remains one of the top energy sources on the Old Continent.

The recent study conducted by 600 energy experts from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Norway and Sweden confirmed that hydropower was important energy source for Europe, and 80% of energy experts agreed that hydropower was already helping in tackling the climate change.

Energy experts agreed that hydropower is connected with the low carbon dioxide emissions (96%) with 92% describing hydropower as eco-friendly source of energy.

Despite its significance, 63% of energy experts believe that hydropower doesn't receive enough political support in Europe. There are plenty of untapped hydro resources across the Europe but political support is still inadequate for bigger exploitation.

Energy experts had high praise in terms of the reliability of hydropower plants, stability (95%), high efficiency (88%) and also the long-term profitability (83%). The researchers also agreed on the importance of pumped storage projects, with 84% stating that it will play a significant role in the future, while 90% agreed that the modernization and expansion of existing hydro projects should be at the forefront of development.

From both the economic as well as environmental point of view, hydropower is extremely important source for present time and especially for future. The future of hydropower development definitely belongs to the most important energy questions in Europe.

There are plenty of reasons for more hydropower in Europe, not just in terms of tackling the climate change but also in terms of reliability and cost-competitiveness.