| Spotlight
820MW Sogamoso, and the 400MW El Quimbo projects. The small hydro plants that came online this year are the 15MW La Chorrera plant, 9.9MW Zeus, and 8.5MW Gran Colombia Gold in Antioquia and the 1.5MW Cauyá project in Caldas. Work is continuing on the 2400MW Ituango
hydropower project on the Cauca River. The project suffered a major incident during construction in 2018 when the diversion tunnel became totally blocked. Project owner Empresas Publicas de Medellin (EPM) received more than US$1 billion in insurance payments related to serious design and construction problems as a result of the incident. Earlier this year, a report into the project said the country had no choice but to finish it as it would create a greater socio-environmental threat if it was aborted. Back in March this year, EPM launched a competitive bidding process for a new construction contract on the project. Reports are suggesting that the project could begin initial operation in August 2022, four years later than scheduled.
4. Argentina – 11.3GW Argentina occupies the fourth position in the list
of top hydropower producing countries in South America, with an installed capacity of 11,345MW. Hydroelectricity is the third-largest primary energy source for the country, after natural gas and oil. Some of the major operational hydropower plants in the country include the 3.1GW Yacyretá, the 1890MW Salto Grande which is shared with Uruguay, the 1400MW Piedra del Águila, the 1260MW El Chocón and 1050MW Alicurá.
Earlier this year, the Federal government said it would conduct a comprehensive survey of hydropower projects in the country, concentrating first on projects with concessions due to expire in 2023.
5. Paraguay – 8.8GW With an installed hydropower capacity of 8,810MW
last year, Paraguay stands in fifth spot on the list. The IHA points out in its 2022 Status Report that it became
Above: View of the Yacyretá dam from down-river. The project is a binational hydropower facility jointly owned by Paraguay and Argentina
Acknowledgement
The figures used throughout this report were sourced from the International Hydropower Association’s 2022 Status Report, which can be downloaded at: https://www.hydropower. org/publications/2022- hydropower-status-report and the IHA (2021) ‘Hydropower 2050: Identifying the next 850+ GW towards Net Zero’ report available at https://www.hydropower. org/publications/hydropower- 2050-identifying-the-next-850- gw-towards-2050
the only country in the world with a 100% renewable electricity supply, following the closure of its last thermal plant in December 2021. The country produces a significant amount of its power from three hydropower plants that include the 14GW Itaipú hydropower plant, the 3200MW Yacyretá, and the 210MW Acaray plants. Power from these facilities is supplied to the National Interconnected System to meet the electricity demand. The Itaipú and Yacyretá are binational hydropower facilities owned jointly with the governments of Brazil, and Argentina.
Earlier this year it was announced that NeoGreen
Hydrogen Corporation of Canada had signed a deal with Paraguay’s state-owned electricity administrator Administración Nacional de Electricidad (ANDE) which would see them cooperate in developing commercial- scale hydrogen production at Itaipu. ●
Above: Salto Grande Dam, seen from Uruguay side. Source: Lenilucho, Wikimedia Commons
Left: Aerial view of the Itaipu Hydroelectric Dam on the Parana River, on the border between Brazil and Paraguay
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