The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has identified five "major gaps" in the country's push for a domestic hydropower supply chain. 

A report from the DOE released on August 6 gathered feedback from stakeholders across the hydropower industry on their various struggles with suppliers, while proposing solutions to address each of those issues. 

“As more variable renewable energy sources like solar and wind are incorporated into the U.S electricity grid, hydropower will play a key role in keeping it reliable and stable,” said DOE assistant secretary Jeff Marootian. “These new recommendations will strengthen the domestic supply chain needed to enhance our nation’s hydropower capabilities.”

The DOE's report found that because hydropower systems tend to last 30-50 years, it can be difficult to plan for replacement parts over the course of decades. It also said that for some system components, there are only one or two domestic suppliers, while in some cases, there aren't any. Other obstacles include procurement limits from existing federal regulations, foreign competitors undercutting the domestic market, and a shortage of skilled hydropower workers in manufacturing. 

To address those gaps, the DOE proposes a database to track and identify domestic hydropower suppliers, in addition to tools that highlight power unit specifications such as size and turbine type. To help expand the availability of components, the agency recommended that the hydropower industry work with stakeholders in other sectors such as wind power, ship building and defense to identify common materials and parts they each use, and develop a "steady and predictable" demand signal so that suppliers know when certain components are needed across industries.

The DOE estimates that hydropower makes up around 27% of renewable electricity generated in the U.S., with the agency setting a goal to reach 100% by 2035. Half of the country's current hydroelectricity capacity is spread across just three states: Washington, California and Oregon. Washington holds the nation's largest share of hydropower generation at 27%, with hydroelectricity accounting for 60% of the state's total output of electricity.