Climate Vulnerability and Risk for Small Hydropower Plants (SHP) in Colombia: A Methodological Proposal for Analysis

This research paper proposes a replicable and adaptable methodology for assessing climate vulnerability and risk for small hydropower plants (SHP) in Colombia, focusing on water resources as the central element of exposure to address challenges like droughts and irregular rainfall.

• Small hydropower plants (SHP) currently account for 5.2 percent of Colombia's energy mix, and their capacity is projected to more than double in the future. These plants are particularly important for energy access because 65 percent of the country's territory is located outside the interconnected power grid.
• The SHP sector faces climate risks, specifically droughts and irregular rainfall, which disrupt water regulation ecosystem services and impact the stability and availability of river flows.
• Existing studies on climatic and hydroclimatic risks for hydropower in Colombia primarily focus on large reservoirs due to regulatory frameworks and policies that encourage investment in those projects, leaving a gap in case studies for the local and distributed energy production model of SHPs.
• The paper introduces a flexible and adaptive methodology to serve as a reference framework for SHPs across Colombia. This methodology assesses climate risks using indicators of hazard, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity, with water resources as the primary element of exposure.

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Climate Vulnerability and Risk for Small Hydropower Plants (SHP) in Colombia: A Methodological Proposal for Analysis. https://www.wri.org/research/climate-vulnerability-and-risk-small-hydropower-plants-shp-colombia-methodological

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Climate Vulnerability and Risk for Small Hydropower Plants (SHP) in Colombia: A Methodological Proposal for Analysis. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/climate-vulnerability-and-risk-small-hydropower-plants-shp-colombia-methodological.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Climate Vulnerability and Risk for Small Hydropower Plants (SHP) in Colombia: A Methodological Proposal for Analysis |url=https://www.wri.org/research/climate-vulnerability-and-risk-small-hydropower-plants-shp-colombia-methodological |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendclimate, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Climate Vulnerability and Risk for Small Hydropower Plants (SHP) in Colombia: A Methodological Proposal for Analysis}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/climate-vulnerability-and-risk-small-hydropower-plants-shp-colombia-methodological}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }