Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- By installing whirlpool turbines at all water intakes in irrigation canals, it is possible to provide about 1.1 million or 15% of the total number of households in the country with environmentally friendly electricity.

Experts from the Institute for Forecasting and Macroeconomic Research (IPMI) assessed the possibilities of obtaining energy from water resources in Uzbekistan.

The main sources of Uzbekistan’s hydropower potential are glaciers, rivers, lakes, reservoirs, transboundary rivers and groundwater.

The results of the analysis show that the theoretical gross hydropower potential of the river runoff in Uzbekistan is about 88.5 billion kWh per year, the technical potential is 27.4 billion kWh. Currently, about 24% of this potential is being used.

In the hydropower sector, on average, up to 6 billion kWh hours of electricity per year, or 168 kW. hours per capita is generated.

Of the studied water flows in the country, the Pskem River in the Bostanlyk district of the Tashkent region has the greatest potential - 1,324 MW or 45.3% of the available hydropower resources of Uzbekistan.

In 2022, 9% of all electricity (6.5 out of 74.3 billion kWh) and about 12.8% of current capacity (2,053 out of 16,030 MW) was produced by hydroelectric power plants.

In the course of the study, a hydropower rating of the regions was compiled. 9 out of 14 regions have hydroelectric power plants. Tashkent region took the 1st place in the ranking. It was determined that there are opportunities to improve the rating of Bukhara, Jizzakh and Fergana regions. Private investors have identified as promising projects for the construction of micro-hydro power plants with a capacity of up to 500 kW each, as a result, an opportunity will be created to generate an additional 202.7 million kWh of electricity.

A United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) report on the development of small hydropower demonstrated the efficiency of a 13kW turbulent-flow microhydro power plant in Indonesia. The new turbine is designed for a flow rate of 1.5 m3/s and a height difference of 1.7 m. The cost of one kWh of local energy is 0.08 US dollars, and the levelized cost of electricity - LCOE (levelized cost of energy) - 0.04 USD. The total investment cost of the turbine pays off in six years.

According to the results of an expert assessment, the purchase of a turbine, the implementation of 300 m3 of reinforced concrete work in local conditions and the launch of a micro-turbulent hydroelectric power plant with a capacity of 100 kW will cost about US$230,000. This device, when operating at maximum power, generates 864 thousand kWh of electricity per year, and when operating on a seasonal watercourse - 576 thousand kWh of electricity per year. The project, with the use of "green" tariffs and exemption from all taxes and fees, will pay off in 5-7 years.

There are opportunities in the regions to generate additional electricity using innovative technologies (water waves, whirlpool turbines, screw turbines, etc.). For example, by installing whirlpools in irrigation canals, it is possible to provide about 1.1 million or 15% of the total number of households in the country with environmentally “clean” electricity.