Hydropower climate change resilience guidelines development

Project Summary:

The objective of this grant is to pilot Resilience Guidelines for the Hydropower sector developed with KGGTF funding in order to test and ensure their practical and effective use.  

Historical data is no longer sufficient for planning due to uncertainties in rapid socio-economic changes. To solve this problem, the World Bank KGGTF funded the creation of Guidelines to develop new approaches in long-term planning to improve the resilience of investments through tools and solutions for robust risk management and decision-making. The application of these Guidelines will help to identify vulnerabilities to climate and other uncertainties under the WBG green growth agenda. By providing support for the implementation of the Guidelines developed with funding from the KGGTF, this grant will help design more robust and resilient investments and ensure that the Guidelines are practical for users. The application of the Guidelines will be demand driven and fed directly into operations or technical assistance to identify specific future investments. The goal is to put decision makers in a better position to take relevant long-term decisions for the hydropower sector, and to understand how to incorporate resilience into their planning in a meaningful way. KGGTF support will enable both training in climate change resilience for selected client countries and dissemination of the Guidelines at the World Hydropower Congress in Paris in May 2019. This grant will support the use of these Guidelines for World Bank funded projects across all regions. It will help mainstream long-term green growth in project design and hydropower system planning, ensuring that Hydropower investments are more robust to whatever future conditions may materialize.

List of Activities:

1. Country 1 - Implementation of Hydropower Resilience Guidelines on project for first identified project
2. Country 2 - Implementation of Hydropower Resilience Guidelines on project for first identified project
3. Country 3 - Implementation of Hydropower Resilience Guidelines on project for first identified project

• Capacity building of clients – Deepening clients’ understanding incorporating resilience principles into hydropower projects
• Further strengthening of partnerships for a unified approach to resilience - Clients and contractors understand how to make hydropower projects more resilient 
• Improving the practicality of incorporating resilience principles into all hydropower projects - Guidance on resilience that is understood and recognized as good practice across the hydropower sector  

Outcomes:

Output 1-3:

• Final report detailing experience of implementing the Guidelines 

Outcomes:

• Improved efficiency:  By implementing the Guidelines, users will ensure that their investments are efficient both in the near and longer term. The consideration of multiple facets of a hydropower project guides users to prioritize no- and low-regret options, something that would not have been emphasized as heavily otherwise. Furthermore, by providing feedback on the Guidelines in their current form, users at this stage ensure operational efficiency for future users. 
• Greater resilience:  Resilience is the crux of the activities that would be funded by this grant. The Hydropower Sector Climate Resilience Guidelines emphasize undertaking activities that succeed under a wide range of possible futures. While the specific manifestations of climate change at the local level are unknown today, there exist methodologies that can ensure infrastructure projects are successful both today and in an unknown future.  
• Increased competitiveness: Resilience to climate change and other risks is becoming a greater area of emphasis across many different IFIs. Due to the financial efficiencies stated above, by following the Guidelines, users are ensuring that they remain competitive in the field of decision making under uncertainty and that they are on the cutting-edge of infrastructure planning and the ability to plan for the future. From the utility’s perspective, having a resilient investment plan that follows specific guidelines ensures cost-effectiveness and therefore competitiveness on both the regional and international levels.

Collaboration with K-Partners and Others:

• Korea East South Power Company (KOEN)
• Daelim Industrial Co.
• Kyeryong Construction Industrial Co.
• The International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD)
• The International Hydropower Association (IHA)
• European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)