Italy is the 4th largest producer of electricity from hydropower in Europe, and it plays a large role in the power generation mix in the country, alongside the country’s Alpine neighbors — Austria and Switzerland. Their mountainous regions make the perfect spot for hydropower plants to be situated. Italy’s ambition is to generate 42,000 GWh of hydropower from 17.8 GW of installed capacity by 2020 (Source: International Hydropower Association).
This forms the perfect backdrop to the special Hydropower Day featuring in this year’s POWER-GEN Europe & Renewable Energy World Europe, which will take place in Milan, Italy, on June 21-23.
The conference is taking place under the patronage of the Italian Ministry of Economic Development, with the dedicated focus on hydropower being proudly supported by HydroWorld.com. Building on the legacy of PennWell’s landmark event HydroVision International, held in the USA annually, hydropower will be a running theme at the POWER-GEN Europe & Renewable Energy World Europe multi-track conference. Particular emphasis will be placed on storage, including pumped storage hydroelectricity.
Thursday, June 23, has been designated Hydropower Day at POWER-GEN Europe & Renewable Energy World Europe. The conference aims to present water power in context within the overall changing power generation market in Europe and will try to address overarching themes and questions, such as: Where is hydro fitting in the energy “cloud”? What can hydro contribute in this changing market? How could its role be enhanced? Where is European energy policy headed regarding hydroelectric power and marine energy, and what threats are out there?
Hydropower in Italy — The Facts
· 67% of energy produced by renewable sources comes from hydro
· Italy is the 4th largest hydro producing country in Europe
· 18,092 MW installed hydropower capacity
· 45 TWh annual average hydroelectric power consumption
· 16.6% hydro’s contribution to total gross electricity production
The conference program has been devised by an expert panel of hydropower professionals from such companies as Verbund, European Association for Storage of Energy, South Tyrol Energy Association, ABB, Andritz Hydro, GE Renewable Energy, and Voith.
Confirmed speakers include representatives from:
· A2E, Germany
· DNV GL Energy, Germany
· EDP Generation, Portugal
· Naturstromspeicher, Germany
To find out more about POWER-GEN Europe & Renewable Energy World Europe’s hydropower focus, please visit here.
