Under the conditions of climate change, flows will decrease in 18 river basins of the Republic of Armenia, and hydropower production will also decrease by 2040. The annual probability of drought will increase by about 80% by 2100. This means that an event that currently occurs once every 100 years could start happening every 10 years or more. This is mentioned in the draft decision of RA government "On approving the climate change adaptation program in the energy sector and the list of measures for 2023-2027".
The authors of the document propose two climate adaptation measures in the field of hydropower. The first measure refers to the large HPPs Sevan-Hrazdan and Vorotan hydrocascade. In order to reduce evaporation and increase energy production, it is recommended to evaluate the expediency of building solar photovoltaic plants on reservoirs and derivation systems of large HPPs. The financial value is estimated at 60,000,000 AMD.
The second measure concerns small HPPs. it is proposed to carry out a re-evaluation of the location map of small hydropower plants, considering the changes in precipitation and evaporation, as well as the remaining life cycle periods and productivity of existing and future plants.
The financial value is estimated at 25,000,000 AMD.
February 17, 2023 at 16:18