POWER July 2013 - 12

THE BIG PICTURE: Parched
Water scarcity as it relates to energy use is becoming a major concern. Cooling water accounts for more than 50% of national
water withdrawals in several developed countries (Eurostat 2010), and it is becoming more important as developing
countries become more energy-intensive. At a river basin level, dry periods have triggered rolling blackouts, and not just
because hydropower plants are forced to operate at dangerously low levels. POWER takes a look at more recent droughtrelated
outages around the world.
-Copy and artwork by Sonal Patel, Senior Writer
In 2011, Texas experienced one of the
most extreme droughts in the state's
history. In December 2011, sources of
cooling water supplies were at historic
lows for almost 11,000 MW of generating
capacity. In addition, market electricity
prices rose dramatically in August 2011,
during the height of the drought and peak
electricity demands: real-time electricity
prices on Texas' wholesale market hit the
state's market cost cap of $3,000/MWh on
five days in August.
Drought events in 2003 and
2006 in Europe required the
shutdown or curtailment of a
number of thermoelectric
units. During the 2003 event,
France was forced to shut
down as much as 25% of its
nuclear fleet.
Some parts of China are critically vulnerable to
drought, but though it is pursuing plans to
massively increase generation capacity, including
coal, nuclear, and hydro plants, China's per-head
freshwater resources are only one quarter of the
global average. During 2009, painful water
shortages in southwest China crippled the
region's rich hydropower supplies. In 2011, the
country implemented power rationing stricken by
low water levels in the mighty Yangtze River.
In 2010, Venezuela warned of a
power system collapse as a
drought pushed water levels
precariously low in the country's
biggest hydropower dam.
Brazil this winter suffered
its worst drought in 50
years, which impacted
power generation in the
country that depends on
hydropower for 67% of
supplies. Its power sector's
vulnerability to drought
was especially highlighted
by the 2001-2002 energy
crisis.
East Africa had critical
power cuts as water levels in
the hydropower-dependent
region reached their lowest
levels in 60 years in 2010
and 2011, including in
Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania,
and Ethiopia (which plans to
increase its hydro capacity
to 15 GW from 1 GW within
the next decade)
CHANGE IN PRECIPITATION BY END OF 21ST CENTURY
Research suggests that over the next century, wet areas
will get wetter and dry areas drier.
60
The vast grid failure
that shut off the
lights to half of
India's 1.2 billion
citizens in August
2012 was blamed in
part to low rainfall
that restricted
hydropower
generation.
From 2000 to 2010,
southeastern
Australia experienced
a " one in a thousand
year drought.
Generation at three
coal plants was
curtailed in 2007 to
protect municipal
supplies.
New Zealand in 2008 urged households to cut
power consumption by 15%, concerned about
low water levels in the country's lakes. The
public was also asked to save power for similar
reasons in 2001, 2003, and 2006.
THE WORLD'S WATER RESOURCES
The total volume of water on Earth is about 1.4
billion cubic kilometers (km³). Freshwater resources
make up around 35 million km³, or just about 2.5%
of the total volume.
-60
Source: NOAA/GFDL CM2.1
12
Source: UNEP
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POWER | July 2013
Of these freshwater resources, about 24 million
km³ or 70% is in the form of ice and permanent
snow cover. Freshwater lakes and rivers contain
only around 0.3%of the world's freshwater. The
remaining 30% is groundwater.
70% of the world's blue water withdrawals at a
global level go to irrigation, 20% for industry use,
and 10% for domestic use
inches of water per year

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POWER July 2013

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