U.S. Department of Energy Announces Winners of Second Annual Hydropower Collegiate Competition

Washington, D.C.—The U.S. Department of Energy today announced the winners of the 2024 Hydropower Collegiate Competition (HCC). Northern Arizona University was the overall winner, followed by Johns Hopkins University in second place and California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in third place.

The HCC, now in its second year, asks multidisciplinary student teams to tackle common challenges in hydropower, giving them real-world exposure to the industry and a head start in a clean energy career. Hydropower has a key role in ensuring the electricity grid remains reliable and stable as it evolves to incorporate more variable renewable energy sources like wind and solar. However, more than a quarter of today’s hydropower workers will reach retirement age in the coming years, and the industry needs a new generation to fill these jobs and support the country’s clean energy goals. The HCC aims to train, equip, and inspire this next generation of the hydropower workforce. 

“Hydropower has an important role in clean energy, and these winning teams bring the ingenuity, enthusiasm and vision we need for discovering how to tap its full potential,” said Jeff Marootian, principal deputy assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy. “And since the competition is designed to spark interest in these careers, it’s very exciting to imagine the possibilities with this caliber of talent leading our future clean energy workforce.” 

This year’s competition asked teams to develop solutions to add power-generating infrastructure to existing non-powered dams. With less than less than 3% of the nation’s more than 90,000 dams producing electricity, there is a significant opportunity to expand clean energy in the United States with new hydropower.

Teams competed in three required challenges and one optional challenge. The nine competing teams shared their work April 29–May 1, 2024, at the 2024 National Hydropower Association Midwest Regional Meeting, co-hosted with the Midwest Hydro Users Group, in Des Moines, Iowa. Teams presented their technical plans, a poster summarizing their concept, and approaches to creating connections among the industry and their local communities. 

After reviewing the presentations, the competition’s expert judges selected the first, second, and third place winners. They also chose five individual category winners: 

• Siting Challenge: Northern Arizona University
• Design Challenge: Northern Arizona University
• Community Connections Challenge: Northern Arizona University and Johns Hopkins University (tie)
• Optional Build and Test Challenge: Johns Hopkins University
• Best Poster: University of North Florida.

The judges also gave special recognitions to the following teams:

• Rising to the Challenge: University of Michigan
• Most Energized: Texas Tech University.

Applications for the 2025 HCC are still open. Those applications are due May 6, 2024, and selected teams are expected to be announced in late May or early June 2024.

The HCC is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Water Power Technologies Office and administered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in partnership with the Hydropower Foundation.