Abstract
The increase of volatile generation from wind and solar power in Europe leads to a higher demand for flexibility in the electrical energy system. As part of the HydroBalance project this paper assesses the potential of Norwegian hydropower to provide this flexibility to the European energy markets by simulating to different scenarios for the expansion of hydropower in Norway. A comparison of the resulting cost reduction of variable system costs with necessary investment costs shows that there is an economic benefit of Norwegian hydropower to the European system especially when providing cross-border balancing.