Hydro Power Plant

How Hydropower Works!

 Hydrologic cycle
How Hydropower Works! (ctd…)
 Water from the
reservoir flows due to
gravity to drive the
turbine.
 Turbine is connected to
a generator.
 Power generated is
transmitted over power
lines.
POTENTIAL
Potential
 THEORETICAL- The maximum potential that exists.
 TECHNICAL- It takes into account the cost involved
in exploiting a source (including the environmental
and engineering restrictions)
 ECONOMIC- Calculated after detailed
environmental, geological, and other economic
constraints.
Continent Wide distribution
REGION THEORETICAL TECHNICAL
POTENTIAL (TWh) POTENTIAL (TWh)

AFRICA 10118 3140

N. AMERICA 6150 3120

LATIN AMERICA 5670 3780

ASIA 20486 7530

OCEANIA 1500 390

EUROPE 4360 1430

WORLD 44280 19390

Top ten countries (in terms of capacity)
COUNTRY POWER INSTALLED
CAPACITY CAPACITY
(GWh) (GW)
TAJIKISTAN 527000 4000
CANADA 341312 66954
USA 319484 79511
BRAZIL 285603 57517
CHINA 204300 65000
RUSSIA 160500 44000
NORWAY 121824 27528
JAPAN 84500 27229
INDIA 82237 22083
FRANCE 77500 77500
Global Installed Capacity
Under Construction……
Components Of The Plant And
Their Role In Its Working
Site Selection

 Availability of water
 Water storage
 Water head
 Accessibility of site
 Distance from the load centre
 Geological characteristics of site