Hydropower Operations Optimization (H2Os) Prize

Prize Background

As the U.S. grid evolves and integrates more variable renewable energy resources like wind and solar, hydropower management can be adapted to support changing grid conditions and enhance the reliability and resiliency of the grid. By increasing hydropower's ability to operate flexibly and integrate variable energy resources, solutions funded by this competition support the administration's goal of a decarbonized power sector by 2035.

Hydropower technologies are versatile and can be dispatched quickly. They can operate reliably and sustainably, but grid operators often limit existing hydropower resources based on conservative estimates of hydropower availability and water management practices.

As part of WPTO's Hydropower and Water Innovation for a Resilient Electricity System (HydroWIRES) Initiative, the H2Os Prize encourages competitors to leverage advanced modeling, data analytics, and machine learning capabilities to develop solutions that can help hydropower systems coordinate with existing grid scheduling practices and offer the full set of hydropower resource capabilities.

Through the competition, WPTO seeks solutions to address key hydropower technology development goals:

• Hydropower Management Performance: Hydropower scheduling solutions that respect the water system's physical and operational constraints.
• Hydropower Generation Benefits: Economic and environmental benefits resulting from hydropower generation based on feasible hydropower output and electricity market energy prices.
• Novel, Scalable, and Broadly Applicable Hydropower: Flexible solutions that apply to a variety of facilities within a range of modeling and institutional workflows.

Prize Structure

The first three phases of the prizes are complete. Registration for Phase 4 opens in July 2023 and consists of an in-person competition at the National Hydropower Association's Clean Currents Conference on October 10-13, 2023. Only the first 10 registrants will be allowed to participate at the in-person competition. Competitors must have previously registered for any one of the first three phases to be eligible and meet all eligibility requirements outlined in Section 5.7 in the rules document. Upon registration, teams must enter their Topcoder handle to prove their prior registration. As a part of the registration process, competitors will be required to submit a 150-word abstract outlining their proposed solution.

Phase 1

• Prize pool of $10,000
• Grand prize of $3,000
• $1,000 prizes for up to seven other winners

Phase 2

• Prize pool of $15,000
• Grand prize of $7,500
• $1,500 prizes for up to five other winners

Phase 3

• Prize pool of $50,000
• Grand prize of $30,000
• $10,000 prizes for second- and third-place winners

Phase 4

• Prize pool up to $85,000
• One grand prize of $25,000 in cash and prizes
• $20,000 for second place
• $15,000 for third place
• $10,000 for fourth place
• $5,000 for up to three other winners

Important Dates

All dates are subject to change including contest openings, deadlines, and announcements.

Sign up for updates for the Hydropower Operations Optimization (H2Os) Prize here.

Who Can Participate?

The prize aims to attract and support dedicated, cross-disciplinary teams of highly capable individuals interested in contributing to solutions that will help improve the performance of hydropower system operations and spur the clean energy transition.