What We Do

There is no one energy answer

After generations of burning carbon-based resources, the world is looking to many alternative technologies and additional existing resources to alter that course. It's not a case of "all our eggs in one basket” but an array of renewable fuels bolstered by massive conservation efforts to secure a sustainable future.

Water is our fuel

NEHC's fuel is renewable rain and snow—quantifiable year over year. We study flows and floods over short-and long-terms to determine the viability of a given site. Thousands of small dams and canals "store" water as fuel. They have powered America and served as containment for reservoirs, irrigation systems for generations. Over 50% of dams in New England alone are situated next to mills, and there are over 50,000 unpowered dams across the United States.

Harnessing Water Power

In all aspects of site development, NEHC is a leader. From site analysis to understanding the potential of a water source and its stability to final permitting and construction, we manage small-hydro with depth and understanding including financial modeling, all initiated in-house. To harness the site and produce electricity, we rely on two turbine partners, Spaans Babcock from Holland, and Voith from Germany and Austria. Both have headquarters in North America. They each provide distinctly different machinery which enables us to consider every potential site and the vast array of parameters they offer. In either case, installations are environmentally sound and fish friendly. NEHC will certify all our projects with the Low Impact Hydro Institute (LIHI) regardless of technology.
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Lifting Archimedes Screw Turbine into place with NEHC signage

Built on 2 Ideas,
Natural and Historical

Natural

1

We use the natural flow of
water as fuel

New England Hydropower uses the natural flow of water as fuel

New England has nearly 50 inches of precipitation each year, other regions have equivalent amounts of precipitation as well.
We don’t take water out of the waterways. Our systems are "run-of-river" meaning the same volume of water that passes into the Turbine comes out at the bottom. Canal systems sustain a constant volume and controllable flow from the canal. They operate at a very high capacity factor due to the constantly full canals.
We know which waterways work for us and which will not. Flows are generally predictable. The records for waterways and gauges of flow are reliable and accurate. We study sites and engineer our systems to optimize each site so that we can predict the value of the energy.

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Historical

2

Dams and canals were sited very intelligently by early builders

There are mills and dams together, and there are dams alone, and there are canals—thousands in the region, tens of thousands across the United States

Legacy dams were sited very intelligently. The builders could read rivers remarkably well. For us, that is a gift. They underestimated the effects of dams on wildlife and fish, but they created a nation using their knowledge.
Many dams and canals remain valuable assets, protecting towns, providing water and wetlands. Now that the need for renewable power is critical, they can again become a source for clean energy. NEHC understands that there is a balance between developing power sources and improving and rebuilding habitats for fish and wildlife. Each site has unique characteristics, hazards, risks and potential.
Working with communities and regulators, we find that balance. We even understand that some dams should be breached for the stability of the water system. We are looking to find the best answers and alternatives for the environment, fisheries and the local culture and history.

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Featured Projects

NEHC’s projects span a broad variety of flow conditions, infrastructure and social interests from run-of-river sites in Connecticut and Rhode Island to historic coal barge canals in Pennsylvania.

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