For humans, the expense of building a massive dam puts them out of reach for many developing regions. Even worse, huge loans for dam construction have shackled some developing economies to crippling debt.

A simple-to-build, small scale system may help solve these problems. Standardized pre-fabricated modules should make it possible to order this new product as a “power plant kit” just like ordering from a catalog.
The innovative pathway’s design allows fish to avoid being sucked against protective grills or into turbines.

Also, slower rivers can use the power plants, opening up many new waterways for power production. Many of the power plants’ parts are placed underwater and out of sight, reducing the impact on the environment and improving aesthetics.

HUG power plant pathways aren’t just for producing power in wealthy nations. The price tag is right for developing nations, too.
The HUG power plant uses standardized parts, so no custom engineering is necessary. A one-size-fits-all pathway could be ordered as if out of a catalog.

The inventors estimate that the HUG power plant pathway will reduce costs of construction by over 50 percent compared to conventional dams.

Clean energy from local, hydroelectric pathways could provide power to remote villages on the banks of Congo, as well as hamlets along the Rhine.

The HUG power plant is capable of operating economically given a low “head” of water of only one to two meters, while a bay-type power plant requires at least twice this head of water. Series production could offer an additional advantage: In the case of wider bodies of water, several HUGs could be dug next to each other – also at different points in time, as determined by demand and available financing.

The construction is so simple, and thereby cost-efficient, that the power generation system is capable of operating profitably in connection with even modest head heights.
After all, the good locations for hydroelectric power plants have long since been developed. In a number of newly industrialized nations, huge dams are being discussed that would flood settled landscapes and destroy ecosystems. In many underdeveloped countries, the funds and engineering know-how that would be necessary to bring hydroelectric power on line are not available.

Smaller power stations entail considerable financial input and are also not without negative environmental impact. Until now, the use of hydroelectric power in connection with a relatively low dam height meant that part of the water had to be guided past the dam by way of a so-called bay-type power plant – a design with inherent disadvantages:

• The large size of the plant, which includes concrete construction for the diversion of water and a power house, involves high construction costs and destruction of natural riverside landscapes.
• Each plant is a custom-designed, one-off project. In order to achieve the optimal flow conditions at the power plant, the construction must be planned individually according to the dam height and the surrounding topography.
• Fish-passage facilities need to be provided to help fish bypass the power station. In many instances, their downstream passage does not succeed as the current forces them in the direction of the power plant. Larger fish are pressed against the rakes protecting the intake of the power plant, while smaller fish can be injured by the turbine.

Only a small transformer station is visible on the banks of the river. In place of a large power station building on the riverside, a HUG dug into the riverbed conceals most of the power generation system. The water flows into a pencil-shaped construction and drives many turbines in its path. This solution has become practical due to the fact that several manufacturers have developed generators that are capable of underwater operation – thereby dispensing with the need for a riverbank power house.

Investors can now consider locations for the utilization of hydro power that had hardly been interesting before. This potential has gained special significance in light of the EU Water Framework Directive. The directive stipulates that fish obstacles are to be removed even in smaller rivers. In Bavaria alone, there are several thousand existing transverse structures, such as weirs, that will have to be converted. Construction of thousands of fish ladders would cost billions.

In developing countries like DRC, the distributed, local power generation by lower-cost, easy-to-operate, low-maintenance power plants is the only solution.

Near the outlet, 160 km from the Atlantic Ocean, the V-shaped deep gorge is very fast and narrow; the width is less than 800 m – an ideal location for helical turbines. A $24 million feasibility study is required which includes an experimental model, which would produce 26 MW annually.

The next step is to develop the first power cell line, which will produce 500 MW with an estimated cost of $120 to $220 million, which is one quarter of the price of a nuclear power plant with the same power production.

The combination of water scarcity and hydro electrical production go hand in hand.