Accurate descriptions of existing storage capabilities and constraints of conventional hydropower projects are essential for understanding how existing conventional hydropower reservoirs can support grid reliability and transitioning energy sources (i.e., intermittent sources that require substantial storage). This information helps inform flexible plant operation and potential management strategies. Coarse estimates of energy storage can be derived from reservoir-specific volume and elevation characteristics and simple power plant capacities; more realistic and finer-scale estimates must also account for hydrologic variability and hydraulic and operational constraints. This project catalogs and define types of storage (with increasing levels of detail and complexity) and translate these types of storage into MWh and duration of energy generation. Methodologies to estimate fundamental characteristics of reservoirs and their storage capacity and duration will be developed and applied for across the fleet of conventional US hydropower reservoirs, which will enable more comprehensive evaluations of storage and flexibility for a broader suite of hydropower resources.
