Run of river

Run-of-the-river hydroelectricity (ROR) or run-of-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation plant whereby little or no water storage is provided. Run-of-the-river power plants may have no water storage at all or a limited amount of storage, in which case the storage reservoir is referred to as pondage. A plant without pondage has no water storage and is, therefore, subject to seasonal river flows. Thus, the plant will operate as an intermittent energy source while a plant with pondage can regulate the water flow at all times and can serve as a peaking power plant or base load power plant.

Run-of-the-river or ROR hydroelectricity is considered ideal for streams or rivers that can sustain a minimum flow or those regulated by a lake or reservoir upstream. A small dam is usually built to create a headpond ensuring that there is enough water entering the pipes that lead to the turbines which are at a lower elevation. Projects with pondage, as opposed to those without pondage, can store water for daily load demands. In general, projects divert some or most of a river's flow (up to 95% of mean annual discharge) through a pipe and/or tunnel leading to electricity-generating turbines, then return the water back to the river downstream.

ROR projects are dramatically different in design and appearance from conventional hydroelectric projects. Traditional hydro dams store enormous quantities of water in reservoirs, sometimes flooding large tracts of land. In contrast, run-of-river projects do not have most of the disadvantages associated with dams and reservoirs, which is why they are often considered environmentally friendly.

The use of the term "run-of-the-river" for power projects varies around the world. Some may consider a project ROR if power is produced with no water storage while limited storage is considered ROR by others. Developers may mislabel a project ROR to soothe public perception about its environmental or social effects. The Bureau of Indian Standards describes run-of-the-river hydroelectricity as:

A power station utilizing the run of the river flows for generation of power with sufficient pondage for supplying water for meeting diurnal or weekly fluctuations of demand. In such stations, the normal course of the river is not materially altered.

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Wikipedia