H-HOPE participated in the fourth Brussels Hydropower Day on 8 September 2026, organised by ETIP HYDROPOWER. Bringing together policymakers, industry representatives, researchers and civil society, the event explored the role of digitalisation in strengthening Europe’s energy security and system resilience.
Against a backdrop of evolving energy and geopolitical challenges, the programme connected hydropower innovation with policy and investment priorities. Discussions focused on how the sector can support a cleaner, more flexible and resilient European energy system, while increasing the visibility of European research and innovation projects.
H-HOPE contributed to the technical session “Enhancing Resilience and Digitalisation in Sustainable Hydropower”, presenting its work on energy harvesting and the potential of self-powered digital water networks. The presentations covered technological development, practical applications and the wider value of these solutions.
Giovanna Cavazzini, H-HOPE coordinator at the University of Padova, opened the project’s contributions with “Powering the Digital Water Future through Energy Harvesting”. Her presentation introduced H-HOPE’s approach to recovering hidden hydraulic energy from existing water infrastructure to support digitalisation.
Eduard Doujak, from TU Wien, addressed how energy harvesting can increase the resilience of water supply networks, connecting the technology with the operational needs of water infrastructure.
Moving from research to demonstration, Urban Lundin, from Uppsala University, and Pavel Rudolf, from Brno University of Technology, presented “Staying in Resonance Across Scales: From Laboratory Open-Stream Tests to Full-Scale Open-Channel Demonstration”. Their contribution explored the progression of energy harvesting technologies from laboratory testing to deployment at larger scales.
David Christian Finger, from Reykjavik University, extended the discussion beyond technical performance with “Beyond the Flow: Social, Economic and Environmental Value of Self-Powered Digital Water Networks”. His presentation considered how these systems can deliver broader benefits for communities, infrastructure operators and the environment.
For H-HOPE, the event provided an opportunity to share project developments with Europe’s hydropower community and connect research on energy harvesting with the practical challenges of digitalisation and resilient water infrastructure.
H-HOPE thanks ETIP HYDROPOWER, the contributing speakers and all participants for the exchange.
