Challenges in financing hydropower

New financing structures for public-private partnerships are required to support private sector investment in the development of storage and multipurpose hydropower schemes, according to panellists in the finance session at HYDRO 2024 in Graz, Austria, in November. This report, prepared by Martin Burdett, presents some of the key findings from that session (no full papers were available, as the session took the form of a panel discussion). Speakers underlined the critical role of multilateral development banks, such as the World Bank Group, to provide concessional financing as well as supporting Governments and project sponsors in structuring and de-risking schemes. Robust project preparation, including principally thorough geotechnical and hydrological studies and adequate contingencies, as well as sufficient resources to meet increasingly rigorous E&S requirements demanded by lenders, can avoid cost overruns and delays, it was agreed.