Abstract
The Workshop on Sustainable Storage: Engineering and Ecology in Pumped Storage Hydro-power was an event organized by NINA (Ana T. Silva with support from Charlotte Evangelista) as part of the RP1.1 program (New Hydropower Plants - Design and Construction) within the RenewHydro center, a Norwegian research initiative focused on the renewal of hydropower technology (FME RenewHydro – NTNU, (FME RenewHydro - Norwegian research center for renewal of hydropower technology - NTNU). The workshop, hosted by NINA and partners, took place on December 4, 2025.
RP1.1 program of RenewHydro is dedicated to developing improved designs of future hydropower plants, with a main focus on technological and environmental solutions for intakes and outlets, tunnel systems, powerhouse arrangements and pump-turbine submergence. With this focus, this interdisciplinary workshop aimed at bringing together 22 participants from various backgrounds and institutions (NINA, NTNU, SINTEF Energi, NORCE, ETH-Zurich (VAW), Vattenfall, Annex 1) particularly partners of the RenewHydro centre, to engage in discussions about their work on Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH). The event featured several presentations, both online and in-person, covering a wide range of topics, as outlined in the program at the end of this memo. The discussions were centred around three main themes: 1) Flexibility in PSH, 2) Engineering Aspects of PSH, and 3) Environmental Consequences of PSH. Technical presentations, different projects and case studies were shared and examined in-depth.
The workshop prompted many insightful and relevant discussions, with the aim of identifying pathways to advance scientific knowledge and ensure that PSH in Norway is both sustainable and flexible moving forward.