13. About one balf of the hydropower potential of the roorld is located indeveloping countries, 15l and of tbe technically exploitable hydropower potentialof developing countries, only 409,13I gigawatt hours (Gtdh) of 7,470,176 Gwh, orabout 5.5 per cent, has been develope<i so far (E/I983/9L and Corr.l, table l). Thepotential for developinq further hydropower is therefore immense. fn rnanycountries, the developnent of hvdropower has been hanpered by,factors such as lackof access to povter markets, seasonality of stream flows, the existence of cheapersources such as therrnal and geothermal electric plants, and high investment costs.Given the large increases in oil prices in the past deca<le, however, many potentialhydropower resources have become nore econonical. Large-scale hydroplants, definedas those having a site capacity in excess of 1 megawatt (Mn), have lonq been knownin developing countries. rn this connection there exist in some of these countriesa number of promising opportunities for the establishment of regional hvdropowerprojects which depend prirnarily on co-operation between or among countries sharingriver boundaries. An example is the Itaip6 hydroelectric dam project betweenBraziI and Paraguay. There is also consi<lerable scope for regional co-operation,particularlv in 9{est Africa and Central America, in electric-grid interconnectionswhich can significantly enhance the economic feasibility of large hydropowerscbenes located in one of the participating countries. t4- It has been estimated that snall-scale hydropower rnight comprise between 5 tol0 per cent of the total world hydro-resources potential. 16/ Althouqh inprinciple it seens that small-scale hydropower plants coulE'-offer an ittractivealternative to central grid extensions ana largl diesel generators, it has beenstated that the relatively high investnent costs of these plants would not beeconomical for village systems with 1ow load factors. L7/ It has been found,howeverr that these bigh investment costs could Ue siq;fficantly lowered bystandardized surveys and designs and by the use of local labour and domesticallyL4/^/40/sILEnglish Page 7 manufactured equipments. It has been estimated that an aggregate capacity of aboutl'200 to 1,300 Mrr of srnall-scale bydropower plants could be installed in developingcountries over the 1982-1990 period. l8l (b) Traditional energy sources
**Analysis**
The text discusses the potential of hydropower in developing countries, the challenges and opportunities for its development, and the possibility of regional cooperation and small-scale projects. The text highlights the economic aspects of hydropower development, such as investment costs and market access, as well as the environmental and technical aspects of harnessing this renewable energy source.

**Category**
Economic development, Natural resources and environment