The report “Power on tap: EU hydro giants can add 25 GW renewables without new grids” published by EMBER assesses the hybridisation potential of hydropower plants in seven EU countries, which together account for 93 GW of the bloc’s 131 GW of hydropower capacity. It examines how much wind and solar can be added behind the meter of existing hydro assets, bypassing grid constraints, without affecting dispatch behaviour of existing plants or impacting sites near protected areas.
25 GW of wind and solar can be added to existing hydropower plants across seven EU countries, taking into account environmental constraints. Through hybridisation, Austria, Bulgaria, France, Italy, Portugal, Romania and Spain could integrate 18% of the new renewables anticipated by 2030 without using additional grid capacity.
Hybridisation can almost double the use of existing grid connections, reducing the need for costly network expansion. Hydropower plants eligible for hybridisation operate at just 19% of their maximum output on average, leaving room for wind and solar to increase utilisation to 36% and 31%, respectively. The impact varies by site and country, and in some cases, wind and solar can even triple use of the same grid connection.
Across the seven focus countries, only Portugal and Spain have dedicated rules for hybrid projects, while regulatory support is absent elsewhere. Establishing national legislation, alongside streamlining and prioritising hybrid project applications would unblock renewable deployment and help maximise the use of existing infrastructure.
Access the report here