Optimization of the operation of Dokan hydropower development using Cuckoo Search Algorithm

In this paper one of the recently developed metaheuristic algorithms, the Cuckoo Search algorithm is used for the optimization of the operation of a large hydropower plant in Kurdistan, Iraq. The optimization problem is to realize an annual planned energy generation with monthly imposed fractions. The obtained results are excellent, nevertheless, there are some limitations of the algorithm determined by the initial level into the reservoir and a certain correlation between the type of the year, the starting level and the planned energy to be realized.

Optimization of a complex hydropower development operation using HEC-ResSim

In this paper HEC-ResSim is applied for a complex hydropower development formed by five reservoirs and related hydropower plants. There were considered characteristics of five existing hydropower developments in Romania, for which three reservoirs are with annual regulation and two with daily regulation. The objective function was the realization of a planned energy generation for one year (the mean hydrological year). Obtained results are very close to those obtained applying linear programming, a revised simplex algorithm.

Unruly Mountains: Hydropower assemblages and geological surprises in the Indian Himalayas

Despite a decades long push to develop what is seen as the vast untapped hydropower potential of the Indian Himalayas, hydropower capacity addition has been delayed and become increasingly expensive in India. Policy documents cite “poor” geology as a major reason for these delays. As hydropower in the form of run-of-river projects expand into the Himalayas, their construction activities encounter poor geology more frequently. This paper analyses hydropower development as an assemblage and examines how risk, especially geological risk, is negotiated to allow hydropower development to continue in the Indian Himalayas. We show how the category of “geological surprises” emerges as an institutional response to the problems of run-of-river based hydropower development in a seismically vulnerable landscape. We further show how “geological surprises” act as a boundary object between hydropower policy, project development, infrastructural finance, and hydropower knowledge, allowing for cooperation and negotiation, to allow hydropower development to continue in the geologically complex Himalayas.

Hydropower in Poland

The subject of the analysis in the article is the issue of hydropower development in Poland. The considerations concern legal regulations enabling the construction of hydropower plants. The article postulates the introduction of procedural facilitations in the development of small water and micro-installations (MEW).

Estimating the economic impact of large hydropower projects: a dynamic multi-regional computable general equilibrium analysis

In response to rapidly growing energy demands, Chinese authorities plan to invest more in hydropower development. However, there are concerns about the possible effects on macroeconomy. This paper uses SinoTERM, a dynamic multi-regional computable general equilibrium model (CGE) of the Chinese economy, to analyze the economic impact of large hydropower development projects. The model features regional labor market dynamics and an electricity subdivision module with substitutability between various types of electricity generation. The results suggest that hydropower development will boost economic growth in the project region. Most sectors in the project region will benefit from the hydropower development such as other services, health, and education, while some sectors will suffer a loss in output because of the substantial increase in real wages. For the national, every 10,000 yuan investment can drive the national GDP growth of 1,000 yuan, and the cost is expected to be recovered in ten years. By the end of 2040, the real national wage will be around 0.16% higher than the baseline scenario. The project could only be justified if net environmental benefits outweigh this loss.