Water Power News

You are here

Home » Water Power News
RSS

Below are news updates about hydropower and marine energy technologies from the U.S. Department of Energy, the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, the Water Power Technologies Office, and other federal agencies.

Subscribe to The Water Wire
Submit your e-mail address to subscribe to our periodic newsletter.
January 14, 2021
water flowing at dusk.
2019-2020 WPTO Accomplishments Report is Released
Letter from the Water Power Technologies Office Director, Alejandro Moreno
January 13, 2021
Hydropower and rainbow.
Extending the Service Life of Hydropower Components
In 2019, PNNL successfully identified techniques to reduce cavitation erosion, improving performance and service life of hydropower components.
January 13, 2021
Photo of High Rock dam.
Autonomous Oxygen Sensor Enables Safe, Timely Data Collection
In late 2019, PNNL’s new autonomous, mobile, water quality sensor platform was field-tested for the first time.
January 13, 2021
Illustration of a fish.
Collaborative Interagency Prize Solicits Solutions for Protecting Fish
In 2020, three winners were selected for the Fish Protection Prize, a competition soliciting ideas to protect fish from water infrastructure.
January 13, 2021
Pumped-Storage hydropower in daylight.
Seeking Solutions for FAST Pumped-Storage Hydro Development
In October 2019, WPTO selected four grand prize winners for the Furthering Advancements to Shorten Time (FAST) Commissioning for PSH Prize.
January 13, 2021
Fish swimming in the ocean with sunlight shining through the water.
Acoustic Transmitter Improves Juvenile Fish Tracking and Analysis
PNNL has completed the development of new, highly miniaturized fish-tags, able to be quickly injected, even into tiny juvenile eel and lamprey.
January 13, 2021
Male worker waves at the camera.
WPTO Creates STEM Workforce Development Portals
In 2020, NREL released new STEM and workforce development portals for both marine energy and hydropower.
January 13, 2021
Sonar tracks used in the Electric Power Research Institute’s project on Deep Learning for Automated Identification of Eels.
Analyzing Sensitive Species at Dams via Artificial Intelligence
The Electric Power Institute (EPRI) has successfully automated identification processes for young American eel tracked with multi-beam sonar.
January 13, 2021
MHK technologies in the ocean.
Multi-Lab Partnership Launches Portal for Marine Energy Information
WPTO supported the creation of PRIMRE, a Portal and Repository for Information on Marine Renewable Energy.
January 13, 2021
Verdant’s Free Flow System turbines positioned on the TriFrame mount.
Tidal Testing Underway in New York’s East River
In 2020, Verdant Power deployed their fifth generation Free Flow System turbines with their new TriFrame™ mount in New York’s East River.
January 13, 2021
Columbia Power Technologies' wave energy converter is installed at NREL's 5-MW dynamometer at their Flatirons Campus.
Land-Based Test of a Wave Energy Converter
In 2019, NREL completed a multi-year system design and validation project with Columbia Power using the 5-megawatt dynamometer.
January 13, 2021
Scalable grid integrated systems
River Hydrokinetics Reduce Dependence on Diesel in Alaska
In 2019, the Alaskan village of Igiugig worked with Ocean Renewable Power Company to deploy the RivGen® Power System.
January 13, 2021
MHK technologies in the ocean.
Resource Mapping Expands U.S. Wave Energy Estimates
In 2020, WPTO’s multi-lab resource characterization project released the highest resolution, most comprehensive wave dataset publicly available.
January 13, 2021
Waver energy test site.
Co-Design is Key for Future Wave Energy Systems
From 2014 to 2020, Sandia National Labs and MRE developer Re Vision Consulting investigated advanced controls techniques in wave energy systems.
January 13, 2021
MHK technology in the ocean.
Sandia Develops Method for Quantifying Marine Energy Noise
Sandia National Labs has released reports, open-source codes, and trainings to help quantify MRE device interactions and noise in marine environments.
January 13, 2021
Dolphins jumping out of waves.
3rd International State of the Science Report Released
In September 2020, on behalf of the International Energy Agency’s OES collaborative, PNNL released the 2020 State of the Science Report.
January 13, 2021
DAISY device instrumentation.
Field Tests Demonstrate Performance of Environmental Monitoring Technologies
The PNNL-led Triton Initiative is supporting the development of more precise and cost-effective marine energy environmental monitoring technologies.
January 13, 2021
Ocean crashing against rocks.
Wave Energy Test Site Advances Toward 2022 Commissioning
Oregon State University has completed the design phase of PacWave South, a grid-connected and pre-permitted wave energy test facility.
January 13, 2021
MHK technologies in the ocean.
First-Ever Marine Energy Collegiate Competition Engaged 100+ Students
The Marine Energy Collegiate Competition is challenging university students to propose technical solutions and business cases for marine energy.
January 13, 2021
MHK technologies in the ocean.
WPTO-NOAA Prize Incentivizes Improved Hurricane Monitoring Technology
The Ocean Observing Prize is a competition designed to incentivize the development of marine energy-powered, self-charging ocean observing platforms.
January 13, 2021
Ocean waves crashing.
WPTO Prize Unveils Promising Wave-Powered Desalination Designs
The Waves to Water Prize is a five-stage prize to accelerate the development of small, modular, wave-powered desalination systems.
January 13, 2021
Fish swimming in the ocean.
WPTO-led Initiative Drives Blue Economy Growth and Innovation
WPTO’s Powering the Blue Economy™ initiative has granted more than 85 awards and built new partnerships to catalyze innovation in marine energy.
January 13, 2021
Environmental evaluation tool.
National Labs Commercialize Environmental Evaluation Tools
Under the HydroPASSAGE project, PNNL and ORNL are providing new information that can be used to increase fish survival and lower operational costs.
January 13, 2021
Percheron Power’s composite Archimedes hydrodynamic screw.
The 21st Century Archimedes Screw
An Archimedes Hydrodynamic Screw turbine, using composite materials and advanced manufacturing methods, is reducing costs and improving efficiency.
January 13, 2021
View of a hydropower facility and river at sunset.
Shoring Up Resilience Through Hydropower and PSH
Rapid changes in the U.S. electricity system have created new needs for grid services that hydropower and PSH are well-suited to provide.