Read the latest FutureDAMS article published in International Water Power Magazine (IWP&DC) by Judith Plummer Braeckman from the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership and Jamie Skinner from the International Institute for Environment and Development following their roundtable discussion.
The private sector is increasingly being turned to to finance infrastructure, exposing themselves to risk, particularly in the context of developing countries. The article discusses who should carry the financial risks in large private sector financed hydropower projects? And if private sector investments in sustainable hydropower were to increase in the future, what could this look like?
The topics discussed include:
- Types of risk, ranging from geotechnical risk through to foreign exchange risks, hydrological risks (e.g. climate change or more irrigation upstream) or the risks that government may change and will impose revised contractual arrangements for energy purchase or new regulations.
- The role of sustainable hydropower as more than just a provider of kWh. It has the capacity to provide grid strengthening services which are vital to the management of electricity supply.
- Cost as a substantial barrier to hydropower investment.
- The risks in hydropower construction are substantial and projects are well known to overrun despite all the risk mitigation measures taken.
Download the full article here: Plummer Braeckman and Skinner 2019. Financial Risk and FutureDAMS. International Water Power (August 2019): 32-33.