America’s secret sauce: Powering its energy revolution, 293 dams undergo rehab

The Hoover Dam just turned 90 years old this year (it was completed on May 29, 1935).

The mega-project is more than symbolic: its powerful turbines produce clean, renewable electricity that has been effectively “free power” for communities and industries for nine decades. 

The dam’s output, at 2,080 MW (double the output of an average nuclear power plant), helped power cities like Los Angeles, supplying over 70% of the city’s electricity needs shortly after its completion.

After Hoover, a massive dam-building project followed. It's the secret sauce behind America's industrial and economic might.

Bonneville Dam, opened in 1937, on the Columbia River generates about half the power of the Hoover Dam.

All told, there are more than 92,000 dams in the US that generate electricity, supply drinking water, and protect communities and critical infrastructure, according to the US Dam Infrastructure Report Card.

Bonneville, 2,690 feet long and 197 feet high, is operated and maintained by the US Army Corps of Engineers. 

Yet the biggest of them all is the Grand Coulee Dam (6,809 MW) on the Columbia River.

The Grand Coulee Dam, completed in 1942 in Washington State, remains one of the largest concrete structures in the world. 

It was designed to generate hydroelectric power, provide irrigation, and control floods.

With a capacity of over 6,800 MW (or 6.8GW, thrice the output of Hoover), Grand Coulee remains a cornerstone of US energy infrastructure today, symbolising America's civil engineering ambition.

Now 82 years old, Grand Coulee has a bigger generating capacity than Georgia's Vogtle, America's largest nuclear power plant (all four reactors activated on April 29, 2024), with a total generating capacity of around 4.5 GW.

The success of these dams inspired the construction of hundreds of other hydroelectric dams across the US, harnessing rivers to produce virtually free electricity, control flood and provide irrigation. 

These dams became critical infrastructure that supported rural electrification, industrial growth, and urban development, providing a renewable energy source with no direct fuel cost.

The free power generated by these dams has enormous economic and environmental benefits.

It reduces dependence on fossil fuels, lowers electricity costs for consumers, and mitigates greenhouse gas emissions.

Moreover, hydroelectric dams offer reliable, dispatchable power that complements other renewable sources like solar, wind and nuclear.

Today, there are 293 hydroelectric facilities in the US, with an average plant age of 79 years.

To keep them humming, the US government is pouring big money into fixing 293 hydroelectric facilities — in order to boost grid resilience, protect ecosystems, and secure 6,000 clean-energy jobs.

The US government is betting on water power to anchor America’s energy future. 

Through the Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives program, the US Department of Energy is investing $430 million across 33 states to modernise turbines, strengthen dam walls, upgrade safety systems, and make rivers friendlier to fish and kayakers alike.

California (39 projects) and New York (35) lead the pack, with federal funds covering 30% of costs.

There’s a private component in funding the hydroelectric dam rehab program: In fact, private firms are forking out $2.38 billion, in addition to the $430 million from the US federal government. 

The overhaul aims to keep hydropower — already 27% of the nation’s renewable energy — safe, sustainable, and reliable in an era of extreme weather and rising demand.

This isn’t just about energy: it’s about resilience.

From upgrading transformers and spillways to installing fish ladders and recreational trails, it’s a promise that America’s oldest renewable energy source still has plenty of life left to give.

The US Department of Energy’s “Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives” program (Section 247) will see $430 million being invested across 293 rehabilitation projects in 33 states by the federal government to modernise ageing hydropower facilities, boost dam safety, improve grid resilience, and support environmental sustainability.

Projects include turbine and control system upgrades, structural dam refurbishments, and fish-friendly environmental improvements.

These investments are part of the "Investing in America" agenda, reinforcing both clean energy infrastructure and economic opportunity.

The dams that continue to electrify America offer concrete proof that well-designed hydroelectric projects can be a cornerstone of a sustainable, cost-effective means of powering communities — for generations.

The free power produced by this class of dams is not just a relic of the past; they're living monuments to sustainable development. 

It's the backbone of America’s low-carbon energy present and future.

The enduring success of these dams is a testament to the vision of those who believed in harnessing nature’s power for the common good.

It’s a vision of abundance relevant now more than ever.