Dams

Dams and hydropower

Hydropower currently accounts for approximately twenty percent of the world’s electricity production, with about 650,000 MW installed and approximately 135,000 MW under construction or in the final planning stages. Notwithstanding this, there are large untapped resources on all continents, particularly in the areas of the world which are likely to experience the greatest growth in power demand over the next century.

It is estimated that only about a quarter of the economically exploitable resource has been developed to date, leaving the potential for hydro to continue to play a large role in sustaining renewable global electricity production in the future.