If we need a symbolic example of the ability to exploit nature to produce clean energy on a large scale of humans, it is difficult to ignore the Three Gorges Dam.
Built in the 2000s when China was at its peak, the world's largest power plant could generate 22.5 million gigawatt, equivalent to 20 nuclear power plants.
Two of the world's six largest power generation generators are located in the upstream of the Three Gorges Dam reservoir on the Yangtze River. Only these two plants can provide enough electricity to light up Poland.
That makes the problems they are experiencing at the Three Gorges Dam a warning for other economies in Asia, according to Bloomberg. Daily hydropower output has decreased by 51% in the context of the worst drought on the Yangtze River since the early 1960s, part of the drought worldwide also prevented Rhine River in Europe from circulating ships.
That has led to factories having to close due to a lack of electricity. The power grid in the provinces depends on 4/5 of the hydropower output of dams.
The hydropower potential of the Yangtze River and rivers originating from the Tay Tang plateau is extremely important for the future of Asia. Nearly half of humanity lives in countries that depend on large rivers nurtured by the ice and snow of the Tibet plateau and the Himalaya. There has been a heated debate about how those frozen water storages will function when the climate warms but this years phenomena in Sichuan, southwestern China, show that even changes in downstream rainy conditions could affect output from large dams.
That is very important, because these rivers provide a large part of the clean energy expected to be exploited in the next decade. In addition to China, India has about 29 gigawatt, with 13 other gigawatt in neighboring Pakistan, Nepal and Bhutan.
Renewable energy is always subject to changes in output. However, dams are often considered exempt from the worst impacts. With reservoirs operating as a huge reserve of energy, dams have the freedom to determine output at any time. Rechargeable hydropower plants - using the power of low-voltage power plants in the power system during low hours of night loads to pump water from low tanks to high tanks - can provide a surge in electricity with just a button press.
However, the severe drought on the Yangtze River is showing how the climate can disrupt that logic. The major shift in solar energy can be measured in hours, regulated by the sun's rise and fall, and relatively easy to repair by using batteries to shift peak daytime output to grid demand in the early evening.
Wind power is also unstable, and on quiet days the output from turbines will decrease. These days require the use of electricity from other areas and increased burning of fossil fuels to keep the power grid running, but do not cause power outages.
However, hydropower is different, it can operate ineffectively throughout the season. With China's power grid size - peaking in 2016, hydropower accounts for about 18% of electricity output - that is a problem. So far, the highest and lowest monthly gap for wind power in China is about 38% of average monthly output, while solar and nuclear power both have a more stable figure at 13%. Meanwhile, this gap for hydropower is 58%.
The scale of reserves needed to make up for that shortage is huge. So far, China has exploited about half a billion tons of coal compared to the same period in 2019 - equivalent to annual consumption in the US - but still not enough.
The development of low-carbon energy is welcomed, but not always effective. For example, in Pakistan, hydropower output is expected to increase from 31% to half of total output by 2030, while wind power and solar power will increase from only 3% to 10%.
That could be a costly mistake, according to Bloomberg. If there is no diverse combination, the power grids will have to rely on electricity sources that can be imported from abroad: fossil fuels.
The future drought is expected to kill the balance of payments as food import invoices increase, a phenomenon seen in Egypt over the past year.
In addition to the energy crisis, a dry year like a dry year has haunted China since 2020 with the risk of leading to a currency crisis.
Bloomberg said that hydropower is still a promising way for emerging countries to develop low-carbon electricity at low prices and on a large scale. However, it should not be considered a complete solution.
Without adequate renewable technologies, emerging Asia will not be able to access the energy it needs to develop.
