Which country has highest hydropower?
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Introduction
The world’s top 10 countries with the highest hydropower potential are:
Top 10 countries with highest hydropower potential
Norway has more hydropower potential than any other country. In fact, it produces almost 100% of its electricity from hydropower. Canada, Brazil and the United States of America are also major producers of hydropower and have high potential for further production. Russia, China and Sweden also have high potential for further development of this resource but have not yet developed it to their full extent because they do not need all the energy they produce themselves; they export some of it abroad instead (e.g., Norway exports around 50%). Switzerland is another good example here: The country produces around 90% of its electricity through its numerous rivers — not only does this provide clean power but also helps to maintain jobs in rural areas where there aren’t many alternatives!
Norway
In terms of water resources, Norway is the country with the highest potential. It has many rivers, lakes and waterfalls to use for hydropower generation.
Norway’s hydroelectricity production capacity ranks second worldwide behind China according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). In 2016 it was estimated that Norway generated 40 TWh of electricity from hydropower plants which accounted for almost one-third of its total electricity generation.
Canada
Canada has the highest hydropower potential in the world, with over 300,000 megawatts of it. This is more than twice as much as any other country and accounts for more than half of all global hydroelectricity production. Canada also has 2,000 rivers suitable for generating hydroelectric power–more than any other nation on Earth–and it has been developing them since before 1900 (when Niagara Falls was first harnessed).
Brazil
Brazil is the largest country in South America, and it has the largest hydropower potential in the world. The country has a high poverty rate–27% of its population lives below the poverty line, according to data from the World Bank.
Brazil’s economy relies heavily on agriculture, which accounts for 10% of its GDP (gross domestic product). It also has large mineral resources such as iron ore and manganese ore that account for more than half of its exports.
United States of America
The United States is the world’s largest producer of hydropower. The country has a total installed capacity of 139 GW, and it produces more than 6% of its electricity from hydropower.
The USA has the largest hydroelectric potential in the world, with an estimated 1,000 GW of undeveloped capacity at sites that are technically feasible to develop. A significant proportion (over 10%) of this potential exists in Alaska alone!
The USA also has more than 3,000 large dams – defined as those taller than 15 meters – which account for over half of its total installed capacity; it also boasts some very large structures such as Grand Coulee Dam on Washington State’s Columbia River (pictured above), which stands more than 320 meters tall and contains 6 million cubic meters’ worth of concrete when full!
Russia
Russia has the highest hydropower potential in the world, with total capacity of 517 GW. It also has the largest hydroelectric power capacity, which accounts for 16% of its total electricity generation.
Russia’s largest dam is Krasnoyarsk Dam on Yenisey River with an installed capacity of 5 GW and an annual production capacity of 21 TWh.
China
China has the highest hydropower potential in the world. It’s no surprise, then, that it is also one of the biggest producers and consumers of hydropower.
China has more than 40,000 hydropower plants–more than any other country–and accounts for nearly 30% of total global electricity generation from renewable sources (excluding large-scale hydro). Hydropower is a major source of energy in China: it accounted for 16% of its primary energy supply in 2016 and provides much needed stability to an otherwise unstable grid system that relies heavily on coal-fired power plants.
Sweden
Sweden has the highest hydropower potential in Europe, with an estimated potential of 26 gigawatts. Sweden generates more than 99% of its electricity from hydropower and is a net exporter of electricity, accounting for 4% of total EU imports in 2016. The country has a large number of hydroelectric dams that are owned by private companies or municipalities.
Switzerland
Switzerland has a high capacity of hydroelectricity and a high potential for hydropower. It also has the highest percentage of electricity generated from hydropower.
India and Iceland round up the top 10.
Iceland is a country with a cold climate, which makes it ideal for hydropower. Iceland is also sparsely populated, which means there aren’t many people who need electricity to heat their homes or power their appliances. The country has been using renewable energy sources like geothermal and wind power since the 1970s, but recently they’ve been investing more heavily in hydropower as well.
India has the highest potential of hydropower in the world–but unfortunately, most of its rivers run through areas where there are no dams currently being constructed (and some people believe building dams would cause too much damage).
Conclusion
With such a diverse list of countries, it’s clear that hydropower is an important source of clean energy. It’s also worth noting that many of these countries are investing heavily in renewable sources like wind and solar power as well. While hydroelectricity may not be able to provide all our needs, it is certainly one way we can get there!
