- The World Hydropower Outlook, a flagship annual publication by IHA, tracks and directs the progress of hydropower development globally against net zero pathways.
- Drawing upon exclusive new development insights from IHA’s global database, it features in-depth analysis of hydropower’s growth trajectory.
- The report highlights policy and financial investment challenges and examples of good progress.
Main takeaways
- Global hydropower capacity grew by 24.6GW in 2024, including 16.2GW of conventional hydropower and 8.4GW of pumped storage hydropower.
- Hydropower remains the world’s largest source of renewable electricity, supplying 14.3% of global power and supporting power system flexibility in more than 150 countries.
- The global hydropower development pipeline now exceeds 1,075GW, including 600GW of pumped storage and 475GW of conventional projects.
- China continues to dominate global hydropower development, with 14.4GW of new capacity added in 2024, including 7.75GW of PSH.
- Africa more than doubles the previous three years’ development, commissioning 4.5GW of new hydropower capacity in 2024.
- Europe saw a decade-high 680TWh in hydropower generation supported by strong rainfall, while EU and national policy measures drive momentum for pumped storage.
Link to the full report HERE
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
