Hydropower potential
How much firm capacity Iceland's rivers could add, and what it would take to realise it responsibly.
Fjallapower is not a slogan but an engineering argument. It begins with Iceland's real demand, examines what the country's rivers can deliver, and sets out why new hydropower is the responsible way to close a widening gap.
Iceland's electricity consumption keeps rising, while new generation has not kept pace. The margin that once absorbed dry years and peaks is shrinking.
Reservoir storage, transmission capacity, and firm power are all under pressure — a picture the reports document in detail.
Iceland's glacial rivers hold enormous, largely unrealised energy — the scale a Dettifoss–Niagara comparison makes concrete.
Weighed against the alternatives, new hydro offers the firm, low-carbon capacity Iceland needs — if it is planned well.
How much firm capacity Iceland's rivers could add, and what it would take to realise it responsibly.
Assessments of available capacity, reservoir status, and where the system's margins are tightening.
Where constraints in Landsnet's transmission network limit how much power can actually reach demand.
How pricing, competition, and market design shape whether new generation actually gets built.
A clear-eyed look at where wind fits — and where its benefits have been overstated relative to hydro.
Options for getting more from what's already built — such as uprating Sigalda and the Þórisvatn reservoir.
This page summarises the argument. The specific capacity, cost, and demand figures — and the methods behind them — are set out in full in the Fjallapower reports and the wider archive of analysis.
The core argument: why new generation capacity is now necessary.
Putting the scale of Iceland's rivers in perspective.
The proposal, addressed to Iceland's energy leadership.
The foundational document behind the proposal.
Get in touch to discuss the analysis, the assumptions, or what it means for Iceland's energy policy.