Hydropower is electricity generated using the energy of moving water.

Rain or melted snow, usually

originating in hills and mountains, create streams and rivers that eventually run to the ocean. The energy of that
moving water can be substantial, as anyone who has been whitewater rafting knows.
This energy has been exploited for centuries. Farmers since the ancient Greeks have used water wheels to
grind wheat into flour. Placed in a river, a water wheel picks up flowing water in buckets located around the wheel.
The kinetic energy of the flowing river turns the wheel and is converted into mechanical energy that runs the mill.
In the late 19th century, hydropower became a source for generating electricity. The first hydroelectric power
plant was built at Niagara Falls in 1879. In 1881, street lamps in the city of Niagara Falls were powered by
hydropower. In 1882 the world’s first hydroelectric power plant began operating in the United States in Appleton,
Wisconsin.
A typical hydro plant is a system with three parts: an electric plant where the electricity is produced; a dam
that can be opened or closed to control water flow; and a reservoir where water can be stored. The water behind the
dam flows through an intake and pushes against blades in a turbine, causing them to turn. The turbine spins a
generator to produce electricity. The amount of electricity that can be generated depends on how far the water drops
and how much water moves through the system. The electricity can be transported over long-distance electric lines
to homes, factories, and businesses.Hydroelectric power provides almost one-fifth of the world's electricity. China,
Canada, Brazil, the United States, and Russia were the five largest producers of hydropower in 2004. One of the
world's largest hydro plants is at Three Gorges on China's Yangtze River. The reservoir for this facility started filling
in 2003, but the plant is not expected to be fully operational until 2009. The dam is 1.4 miles (2.3 kilometers) wide
and 607 feet (185 meters) high.
The biggest hydro plant in the United States is located at the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River in
northern Washington. More than 70 percent of the electricity made in Washington State is produced by hydroelectric
facilities. Hydropower is the cheapest way to generate electricity today. That's because once a dam has been built
and the equipment installed, the energy source—flowing water—is free. It's a clean fuel source that is renewable yearly
by snow and rainfall.Hydropower is also readily available; engineers can control the flow of water through the
turbines to produce electricity on demand. In addition, reservoirs may offer recreational opportunities, such as
swimming and boating. But damming rivers may destroy or disrupt wildlife and other natural resources. Some fish,
like salmon, may be prevented from swimming upstream to spawn. Technologies like fish ladders help salmon go up
over dams and enter upstream spawning areas, but the presence of hydroelectric dams changes their migration
patterns and hurts fish populations. Hydropower plants can also cause low dissolved oxygen levels in the water,
which is harmful to river habitats.
HYDROPOWER IN THE PHILIPPINES

There are many hydro electric power plants in the Philippines dispersedly located in the various areas in the
countrysides of Luzon Visayas and Mindanao. Almost all of the large hydro electric plants, which ranged from over 50
MW, are connected to the main transmission grid, while most of small (10 MW to 50 MW) and mini (101 kW to 10
MW) hydro plants are embedded to the local distribution system.Below is a list of hydroelectric plants in the
Philippines. Almost all of the large hydro plants are completely enumerated while some mini-hydro plants are not yet
listed;

Capacity Date
Plant Name Location Current Owner Remarks
(MW) Commissioned
Large Hydro          
Luzon          
SN-Aboitiz
Ambuklao Benguet 75 1956 decomissioned
Power
Angat Bulacan 246 NPC 1967 - 1993 Dam Type
Luzon Hydro Run - off /
Bakun Ilocos Sur 70 2001
Corp NPC-IPP
SN-Aboitiz
Binga Benguet 100 1960 Dam Type
Power
Run - off /
Casecnan Nueva Ecija 140 CalEnergy 2001
NPC-IPP
Kalayaan Laguna 684.6 Jpower & 1982 / 2002- Pump
 Capacity Date
Plant Name Location Current Owner Remarks
(MW) Commissioned
Storage/NPC-
Sumitomo 2004
IPP
SN-Aboitiz
Magat Isabela 360 1983 Dam type
Power
First Gen
Pantabangan Nueva Ecija 100 Hydro Power 1977 Dam Type
Corp
Dam type /
San Roque Pangasinan 340 Marubeni/Sithe 2003
NPC-IPP
Mindanao          
Lanao del
Agus 1 80 NPC 1992-94  
Sur
Lanao del
Agus 2 180 NPC 1979  
Sur
Lanao del
Agus 4 158.1 NPC 1985  
Norte
Agus 5 Iligan City 55 NPC 1985  
Agus 6 Iligan City 200 NPC 1953-77  
Agus 7 Iligan City 54 NPC 1982-83  
Pulangi IV Bukidnon 255 NPC 1985-86 Dam Type
           
Small
         
Hydro/Minihydro
Luzon          
Jpower &
Caliraya Laguna 22.6 1942-50/ 2002 NPC - IPP
Sumitomo
Jpower &
Botocan Laguna 20.8 1946-48/ 2003 NPC - IPP
Sumitomo
First Gen
Masiway Nueva Eciya 12 Hydro Power 1980 Dam Type
Corp
Feeding from
Baligatan Isabela 6 NIA 1987
Magat
People's
Camarines
Barit 1.8 Energy 1957  
Sur
Services
Palakpakin Laguna 0.56 Philpodeco 1933-38  
Balugbog Laguna 0.55 Philpodeco 1933-38  
Sorsogon
Cawayan Sorsogon 0.4 Electric 2002  
Cooperative II
Kalibato Laguna 0.075 Philpodeco 1933-38  
Magat A Isabela 1.44 ISELCO 1984 Run-off river
Magat B Isabela 1.08 ISELCO 1985 Run-off river
           
Visayas          
Sta. Clara
Loboc Bohol 1.2 International 1957-67  
Corporation
Negros
Amlan 0.8 NPC 1962  
Oriental
Mindanao          
Bubunawan
offtaker:
Bubunawan Bukidnon 7 Power 2001
CEPALCO
Company
Hydro Electric
Talomo Davao City 3.5 Development 1998  
Corp
Agusan Bukidnon 1.6 First Gen 1957 Run-off
 Capacity Date
Plant Name Location Current Owner Remarks
(MW) Commissioned
Bukidnon
Power Corp