At the same time, record rainfalls swelled rivers across Central and Eastern Europe causing widespread floodings for weeks. A few months before, in 2024, unprecedented droughts hit Southern Europe due to high temperatures – the warmest on record. As climate change will only exacerbate such weather events, Europe’s adaptation efforts must grow.
Hydropower is an ideal technology to support both climate mitigation and adaptation. Beyond generating renewable electricity, hydropower has historically supported the mitigation of water scarcity and prevention of floods by leveraging their water storage and regulating water flows – shows Eurelectric’s new short story. Ensuring these services, however, often entails additional costs for power plants which should be properly recognised at both European and national level.
Preventing water scarcity
Hydropower reservoirs store water that can be strategically released during periods of scarcity or drought to ensure water supplies for industry, support agriculture, maintain stable flows for irrigation and ultimately, secure human consumption. This storage function significantly reduces economic losses associated with water shortages for the overall economy but comes at a cost for the power plant. Releasing water downstream is a missed opportunity for generating renewable electricity, often requiring a change in the operation schedule of the plant.
Damming floods
Hydropower can also mitigate flood risks by regulating river flows and reducing peak discharge during extreme rainfall events. This minimises damage to downstream infrastructure and ecosystems and most importantly, it saves lives. To do so, reservoirs can require a specific design, and connected infrastructure, such as side channels and buffer areas, to accommodate excess water. This also comes at an extra cost for the plant – however worth it.
Time to get acknowledge
To unlock hydropower investment potential, the sector needs clear recognition of all its services beyond electricity generation. It is time for the EU to recognise hydropower’s role in contributing to climate adaptation and for individual Member States to ensure proper remuneration. The EU Water Resilience Strategy, expected in the second quarter of the year, is the ideal place to enshrine this.
To this end, the electricity industry calls on the EU to adopt a scientific data-driven approach when drafting its water strategy proposal, while avoiding dogmatic approaches that would undermine the existing historical contribution to water resilience.
Let the power of water protect rather than destroy.