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The article identifies an empirical blind spot in the literature on hydro-hegemony, with a scant analysis of power relations and resource control between states in transboundary water relations in a Latin American context. This article aims to fill this gap by examining Brazilian hydro-hegemony in the case of the Brazilian–Paraguayan Itaipu hydroelectric dam, the second-largest hydroelectric dam in the world by production. Based on a literature review and analysis of interviews with regional experts, it is argued that Brazilian hydro-hegemony can be best understood as consensual hegemony, resulting in consensual hydro- hegemony as a distinct and understudied form. In the Itaipu case, Brazil established such a hydro-hegemony through the dam's binational administrative company, containing Paraguay within a structure that leads to Brazil-skewed resource control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the optimal integration of high proportions of wind energy into an electricity grid which traditionally depends on hydroelectricity. Wind power in the Brazilian Northeast (NE) is expected to generate 57% of the NE’s electricity supply by 2020. As rainfall in the NE region is susceptible to climate change, it is anticipated that wind energy could substitute lost hydroelectric availability. The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model is used to simulate wind speeds for all of 2014 and calculate wind power across the entire NE region of Brazil. The NE region’s aggregate hourly wind generation and net load curve are then estimated for increasing wind penetrations using the planned rollout of wind farms in the region as a baseline. The maximum wind energy penetration in the region is estimated to be approximately 50% before significant amounts of energy would need to be curtailed or exported to other Brazilian regions. It was found that wind energy generation from coastal wind farms in the region best correlates with the hourly and monthly variations of the NE subsystem’s load curve. Conversely, inland wind farms on the NE’s elevated plateaus typically generate more power late at night, but have higher capacity factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current article assesses the vulnerability of renewable energies in Brazil in the face of climate change, with hydroelectricity and wind power taken as case studies. Future climate data produced by the National Institute for Space Research were employed for three time slices (2010-2040, 2041-2070 and 2071-2100) taken from the Eta 20 km regional model using the global model HadGem2-ES of the IPCC AR5, for scenarios RCP 4.5 and 8.5. Based on these data and using indicators, it was possible to generate predictions that are useful for the evaluation of the impacts of future climate scenarios on the current energy infrastructure, enabling the proposition of recommendations for mitigation and adaptation in the energy sector, a strategic subject for Brazilian governmental programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the long-run and causal relationships between hydroelectricity consumption and economic growth for a panel of the 10 largest hydroelectricity consuming countries over the period 1965–2012. The countries include Brazil, Canada, China, France, India, Japan, Norway, Sweden, Turkey and the U.S.A. Using the Bai and Perron (2003) [9] tests for cointegration, the results indicate that real GDP per capita and hydroelectricity consumption per capita appear to be cointegrated around a broken intercept. Granger causality results from a nonlinear panel smooth transition vector error correction model suggest different results depending on the regimes, which we identified based on structural break tests. The test identified three breaks at 1988, 2000 and 2009. For the pre-1988 period, there is evidence of unidirectional causality running from real GDP per capita to hydroelectricity per capita in both the short- and long-run. Over the post-1988 period, there exists evidence of bidirectional causality between hydroelectricity energy consumption per capita and real GDP per capita in both the short- and the long-run. The results imply the existence of a feedback hypothesis with both hydroelectricity consumption and growth promoting each other in more recent periods, as the importance of hydroelectricity as a renewable energy, has become more prominent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wind power in the NE (Northeast) region of Brazil is currently undergoing rapid development and installed capacity is expected to exceed 16,000 MW by 2020. This study examines the feasibility of integrating large scale wind power into an electricity grid (the Brazilian NE subsystem) which has a high proportion of existing hydroelectricity. By extrapolating existing wind power generation data, the maximum achievable wind power penetration (without exports to other Brazilian regions) and corresponding surplus energy is determined for the NE subsystem. The viable maximum penetration of wind energy generation in the NE subsystem was estimated to be 65% of the average annual electricity demand assuming that existing hydroelectric and gas generators have 100% scheduling flexibility. These results are compared to the actual gross penetration of wind power forecast to reach 55% in the NE subsystem by 2020. The overall LCOE (levelised cost of electricity) is calculated for various scenarios where wind power replaces all fossil fuel generators in NE subsystem. It was concluded that by 2020, wind power could feasibly reduce the overall LCOE by approximately 46–52% and reduce CO 2eq emissions by 34 million tonnes per year compared to a power system with no new renewable generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compares the economic viability of renewable energy technologies – wind, solar photovoltaic, concentrated solar thermal, biomass and wave power – to traditional generation technologies including hydroelectricity, nuclear power, coal power and gas power sources. The Levelised cost of Electricity (LCOE) for different generation technologies in Brazil are calculated by reviewing existing published literature and examining 13 case study projects. Initial results found that using a low (5%) discount rate, the hydroelectric plants had the lowest LCOE, but were only slightly cheaper than the wind power case studies. However, using a high (10%) discount rate, one of the wind power case studies actually had the lowest LCOE. Solar photovoltaic (PV) was found to be the most expensive technology followed by wave power and concentrated solar thermal power (CSP). It will be shown that grid connected distributed PV and concentrated solar thermal technology are largely undeveloped in Brazil due to the high price associated with importing solar power equipment into Brazil and also due to ineffective federal government policy. The environmental and social externality costs of fossil fuel plants and large scale hydroelectric dams (in the Amazon region) are also discussed. It will be demonstrated that wind power becomes the cheapest generation technology in Brazil, once all externality and transmission line costs are taken into consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renewable energy has been encouraged to address climate change and promote sustainable development, leading to structural changes in the national energy matrices. Brazil is reaching a 50/50 renewable/non-renewable energy mix. However, the wide variability in emissions intensity among renewable sources raises questions about the effectiveness of structural changes for SDGs. The present study aims to identify typological profiles (TPs) of structural changes in sectoral energy and carbon footprint and their contributions to sustainable development. From an ecological input-output model, we calculated the sectoral energy and carbon footprint for 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2015. The method adds novelty by creating typologies of structural changes confronting renewable vs. non-renewable and mainly renewable vs. renewable. Four TPs of structural change were found. TP-I and TP-II tended to increase the relative share of renewables in their energy footprint, opposing TP-III and TP-IV. A controversy emerged contrasting TP-I and TP-II since both increased renewable consumption. TP-I decreased the renewable emissions while TP-II increased them. The explanation lies in the energy sources' emissions intensity. While TP-I sectors tended to increase the consumption of renewable energies with low intensity of emissions, such as electricity, TP-II sectors increased the consumption of renewables whose gross emissions intensity could be even higher than non-renewables. Therefore, the simple substitution of non-renewable for renewable sources may not be enough. Pursuing the long-term sustainable structural changes need to be planned based on renewable sources with the lowest net emission intensity and highest renewability. [Display omitted] • Replacing non-renewables with renewables may not be enough to achieve the SDGs. • Typological profiles (TPs) of structural changes may indicate the most effective strategies. • Effective pro-SDGs strategies move sectors from TP-IV, TP-III, and TP-II to TP-I. • Renewables with the lowest net emissions intensity and highest renewability are preferable. • Being renewable is not enough when the emission intensity is higher than non-renewables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article probes the existence of a ‘minerals-energy complex’ (MEC), a concept developed in South Africa, to describe the strong interlinkages between the mining and energy sector in the Brazilian Amazon. Within the framework of the MEC, the authors conduct a normative analysis – based on the United Nations Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) – of the state duties and corporate responsibilities for adverse human rights impacts in the complex. The authors use a single, in-depth case study approach, focussing on the case of the Belo Monte hydroelectric dam in the Amazonian state of Pará. The MEC proves to be a useful framework for studying the advancement of hydroelectricity and mining projects on the Amazonian frontier. The analysis indicates that the Brazilian minerals and energy sectors are mutually dependent and have overlapping interests and decision-making structures. Applying the MEC framework to the Belo Monte case serves to clarify and detangle the relationships between the various actors associated with the dam's adverse impacts. This provides a foundation for the normative analysis of the responsibilities and actions required of each actor based on the internationally-accepted standards in the UNGPs. By applying the MEC as an analytical research framework and drawing on the UNGPs for normative guidance, the present study contributes to the academic literature on corporate responsibility, as well as providing policy and decision-makers with a normative-empirical analysis that can be drawn upon to improve policy and ensure that corporate activity contributes to sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY Currently, governments and companies aim their concern about the environmental problems and energy security. Within this context, the use of renewable hydrogen is presented as an interesting option. This paper presents the alternative to use a renewable resource abundant in the country: hydroelectricity. The public transport service in the urban area of Foz do Iguaçu city, Brazil, was chosen as the scenario where a simulated replacement of the current diesel bus fleet with fuel cell buses was performed. The focus was to take advantage of the energy called Spilled Turbinable Energy (STE) verified by the ITAIPU Hydroelectric Power Plant from 2001 to 2006 in order to produce hydrogen by water electrolysis process. The paper does not contain thermodynamic analysis of the processes involved in the proposal. Based on the monthly average, the maximum value was 1,054,899 MWh and the minimum 9559 MWh. Evaluating the historic behavior of this potential energy in the considered period, from October to June, it was found that the energy demand to produce the electrolytic hydrogen needed to meet the whole demand of the public transport sector of Foz do Iguaçu city, estimated in 14,454.3 MWh/month, amounts only between 1.5% to 8.5% of total spilled energy. This study presents two electrolytic hydrogen production models: the centralized and the decentralized associated with various distribution modes. The comparison between models shows that the centralized hydrogen production associated with central supply mode are economically more convenient for the city, and the hydrogen cost achieved was US$ 2.38/kg in contrast with the decentralized model associated with cryogenic liquid delivery which showed the highest cost, equal to US$ 4.61/kg. Finally, a sensitivity analysis was performed varying four parameters: equipment cost; rate of return; capital recovery time and electricity cost. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper discusses the complementarity between hydroelectricity and surplus electricity from sugarcane biomass-based cogeneration plants in sugarcane mills. The paper investigates opportunities and barriers in the context of governments'' initiatives, institutions and prevailing regulatory frameworks in Brazil and Nepal. The paper finds that bioelectricity from cogeneration can be a good complementary option for hydroelectric power, helping foster diversification on the generation side and enhance security of electricity supply based on local resources. Bioelectricity potential from sugarcane biomass is estimated to be in the range of 209–313 GWh for Nepal and 62–93 TWh for Brazil. In Nepal, the grid connected bioelectricity can provide power for operating industries, and support local development through rural electrification. In Brazil, the biomass potential can be further enhanced through a better utilization of the biomass in the sugar-ethanol industry to balance hydropower availability. This comparative study offers a reflection on the need for better planning and policies to address the barriers which are hindering the development of bioelectricity even in places where the potential is large. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Six hydroelectricity projects registered under the Kyoto Protocol Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), three each in Brazil and Peru, are reviewed to assess and contrast Peru's and Brazil's differing regulatory approaches to assessing the sustainable development (SD) benefits of CDM projects to social development. The Brazilian regulators rely exclusively on documents addressing a finite set of issues, whereas the corresponding Peruvian regulators visit the project site to engage in an ad hoc assessment of SD needs. Brazil's approach encourages foreign investment by providing some certainty of costs and prospects, yet the projects reviewed provided only limited SD benefits for social development. The Peruvian projects included significant and diverse social benefits for the local community. In order to achieve business confidence and social development benefits in the short to medium term, a hybrid of these approaches is recommended. However, successful implementation of this approach will require enhanced domestic non-governmental organization capacity, including additional funding. Ultimately, it appears that the solution lies in multi-stakeholder dialogue among mature regulators, civil society actors, local government and local community actors, and project developers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The increasing demand for energy, especially from renewable and sustainable sources, spurs the development of small hydropower plants and encourages investment in new survey studies. Preliminary hydropower survey studies usually carry huge uncertainties about the technical, economic and environmental feasibility of the undeveloped potential. This paper presents a methodology for large-scale survey of hydropower potential sites to be applied in the inception phase of hydroelectric development planning. The sequence of procedures to identify hydropower sites is based on remote sensing and regional streamflow data and was automated within a GIS-based computational program: Hydrospot. The program allows spotting more potential sites along the drainage network than it would be possible in a traditional survey study, providing different types of dam-powerhouse layouts and two types (operating modes) of projects: run-of-the-river and storage projects. Preliminary results from its applications in a hydropower-developed basin in Brazil have shown Hydrospot’s limitations and potentialities in giving support to the mid-to-long-term planning of the electricity sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Representative Life-Cycle Inventories (LCIs) are essential for Life-Cycle Assessments (LCAs) quality and readiness. Because energy is such an important element of LCAs, appropriate LCIs on energy are crucial, and due to the prevalence of hydropower on Brazilian electricity mix, the frequently used LCIs are not representative of the Brazilian conditions. The present study developed a LCI of the Itaipu Hydropower Plant, the major hydropower plant in the world, responsible for producing 23.8% of Brazil''s electricity consumption. Focused on the capital investments to construct and operate the dam, the LCI was designed to serve as a database for the LCAs of Brazilian hydroelectricity production. The life-cycle boundaries encompass the construction and operation of the dam, as well as the life-cycles of the most important material and energy consumptions (cement, steel, copper, diesel oil, lubricant oil), as well as construction site operation, emissions from reservoir flooding, material and workers transportation, and earthworks. As a result, besides the presented inventory, it was possible to determine the following processes, and respective environmental burdens as the most important life-cycle hotspots: reservoir filling (CO2 and CH4 emission; land use); steel life-cycle (water and energy consumption; CO, particulates, SO x and NO x emissions); cement life-cycle (water and energy consumption; CO2 and particulate emissions); and operation of civil construction machines (diesel consumption; NO x emissions). Compared with another hydropower studies, the LCI showed magnitude adequacy, with better results than small hydropower, which reveals a scale economy for material and energy exchanges in the case of Itaipu Power Plant. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• >350 large hydropower dams have been identified for construction in the Amazon basin. • Climate change will induce large-scale alterations in river hydrology basin-wide. • Frequency of zero hydropower generation increases and full-capacity operation decreases. • Mean hydropower generation decreases by ∼ 30% under worst-case climate change scenario. • Future Amazon hydropower's levelized cost of electricity ($ MWh−1) increases substantially under climate change. Numerous hydropower facilities are under construction or planned in tropical and subtropical rivers worldwide. While dams are typically designed considering historic river discharge regimes, climate change is likely to induce large-scale alterations in river hydrology. Here we analyze how future climate change will affect river hydrology, electricity generation, and economic viability of > 350 potential hydropower dams across the Amazon, Earth's largest river basin and a global hotspot for future hydropower development. Midcentury projections for the RCP 4.5 and 8.5 climate change scenarios show basin-wide reductions of river discharge (means, 13 and 16%, respectively) and hydropower generation (19 and 27%). Declines are sharper for dams in Brazil, which harbors 60% of the proposed projects. Climate change will cause more frequent low-discharge interruption of hydropower generation and less frequent full-capacity operation. Consequently, the minimum electricity sale price for projects to break even more than doubles at many proposed dams, rendering much of future Amazon hydropower less competitive than increasingly lower cost renewable sources such as wind and solar. Climate-smart power systems will be fundamental to support environmentally and financially sustainable energy development in hydropower-dependent regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]