Workforce development |


All kitted out


The Hydropower Knowledge Sharing and Succession Planning Toolkit, created by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in collaboration with the US Department


of Energy’s Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), can help organisations effectively plan for workforce changes and share knowledge across employees. Report by Adam Kanter


HYDROPOWER IS THE LARGEST source of utility-scale energy storage in the US. In 2023, it accounted for 5.7% of US utility-scale electricity generation [1]


, and


Succession planning The process of identifying crucial positions in the organization and creating a talent pathway by preparing employees to fill vacancies in their organization as others retire and move on.


Knowledge sharing The process of capturing skills and information and sharing them between employees and also between parts of an organization aiming to make that knowledge available to all employees.


pumped storage hydropower accounted for 96% of all utility-scale energy storage. Based on the conventional hydropower development pipeline of non-powered dam projects, conduit projects, new stream-reach development, and capacity additions, NREL estimated that conventional generation could add roughly 300 new on-site hydropower jobs across the country based on the current employment levels at existing facilities per megawatt of generation. The pumped storage hydropower development pipeline is expected to develop more capacity than conventional hydropower in the coming years, which will create an additional 8787 jobs based on the current employment levels at existing facilities per megawatt of generation. This growth in hydropower jobs is already placing additional pressure on the US hydropower industry as it experiences increasing rates of retirement and an influx of new hires [2]


. The resulting dynamic creates turbulent operating environments for 20 | May 2025 | www.waterpowermagazine.com


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45