Hydropower Generation
Hydropower is the largest source of renewable electric energy in the United States, accounting for 6% of total electricity generation and 48% of generation from all renewables. Renewable energy from hydropower, solar, wind, and geothermal sources plays an important role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Solar and wind electricity generation capacity is increasing due to federal incentives coupled with renewable portfolio standards, which require electric utilities to supply a specified minimum percentage of customer electricity demand from renewable sources. Pumped storage hydropower is increasingly relied upon to firm the variability of renewable solar and wind sources, in addition to providing traditional benefits such as black start, frequency control, and load balancing services.
NRCE is an experienced engineering consulting firm specializing in conventional, pumped storage, and small hydropower projects. NRCE provides comprehensive hydropower engineering services in the form of feasibility studies, federal licensing support, design, project management, and construction services.
Feasibility Studies
- Hydrologic analysis and modeling
- Hydropower operations modeling, energy analysis, ancillary services analysis, and operations optimization
- Expertise in low head hydropower feasibility assessment, including utilization of existing irrigation infrastructure
- Water quality modeling (CE-QUAL-W2)
Federal Licensing Support
- Technical assistance before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)
- Expertise in FERC’s Integrated Licensing Process (ILP) as well as Traditional and Alternative Licensing Processes
- Conventional hydropower and pumped storage hydropower environmental analyses and environmental assessment development
Hydropower Design
- Hydraulic design and analysis
- Dam, reservoir, and appurtenant structure design
- Generation capacity optimization
Project Management and Construction Services
- Licensing and relicensing project management
- Rehabilitation and new construction services
- Website development and hosting to disseminate project status and license documents to stakeholders