New research projects aim to make the complex licensing process quicker, less costly, and easier to manage while supporting the long-term operation of hydropower facilities
Washington, D.C., 1 September 2026 – Hydropower has been an important part of the US energy system for more than a century, but getting approval to operate or renew a hydropower facility can be a long and expensive process. The US Department of Energy is now supporting a group of research projects designed to make that process more efficient.
The Department of Energy’s Hydropower and Hydrokinetic Office has awarded a total of $5.5 million to 11 projects at US National Laboratories. The projects are focused on finding practical ways to reduce the time and expense involved in licensing and relicensing hydropower facilities across the country.
The initiative is aimed at one of the biggest challenges facing hydropower operators. Before a facility can receive or renew a license, developers and operators may need to complete extensive environmental studies, collect technical information, and work with a range of stakeholders. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission licenses for hydropower facilities generally last between 30 and 50 years, but the studies required for licensing and relicensing can require significant time and investment.
The new projects will explore ways to make this work more straightforward. Their research will cover areas including fish passage, environmental monitoring, mitigation methods, pumped storage hydropower and improved water management tools. The projects are expected to take between one and three years to complete.
One project will examine ways to improve the assessment of pumped storage hydropower. This technology uses two reservoirs at different elevations to store energy and generate electricity when needed. Researchers from Idaho National Laboratory and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory will work on methods that could make environmental assessments for certain pumped storage projects more consistent and easier to conduct.
Another project will focus on fish passage. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory will develop a screening tool to help hydropower facilities assess risks to fish and identify possible monitoring and mitigation measures. The goal is to create tools that can provide useful information without requiring every project to make large investments in monitoring.
Technology will also play a role in improving hydropower operations. Researchers will work with the US Army Corps of Engineers to improve water management modeling tools. The project will explore the use of artificial intelligence to improve calculations and help operators understand reservoir operations more efficiently.
Pumped storage is receiving additional attention through another research project involving the National Laboratory of the Rockies and Norway’s Norwegian University of Science and Technology. The researchers will study data and modeling approaches to identify better practices for pumped storage development and support clearer licensing pathways.
The projects are not designed to remove environmental reviews or eliminate the need for careful studies. Instead, the focus is on developing better information, tools, and methods that can help stakeholders reach decisions more efficiently.
This approach could become increasingly important as existing hydropower facilities move through the relicensing process. The National Hydropower Association has estimated that about 16 gigawatts of hydropower capacity could face relicensing over the next decade.
The licensing process is managed through a detailed framework overseen by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Depending on the project, the process can involve environmental assessments, technical studies, consultations and reviews of issues such as water quality, wildlife and habitat. FERC’s licensing framework includes several pathways, with the Integrated Licensing Process serving as the standard route for many projects.
For the hydropower industry, improving the process could have benefits beyond individual facilities. Faster and more predictable licensing could help operators plan investments, modernize existing plants, and evaluate new technologies with greater certainty.
The DOE initiative therefore represents an effort to bring more efficiency and modern research into a complex part of the energy industry. As the US power system continues to evolve, hydropower and pumped storage could remain important tools for providing dependable electricity and supporting a more flexible grid.
The results of these research projects will take time to develop, but their purpose is straightforward: make hydropower licensing easier to understand, less costly, and more efficient while maintaining the studies needed to evaluate the impact of these facilities.
