Countries with the most hydropower 2026: world ranking and Chile's place

Updated November 13, 2026. China is the country with the most hydropower in the world: it had 382,080 MW installed at the end of 2025, 30.9% of global hydropower capacity, according to statistics from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). It is followed by Brazil, with 110,269 MW, and Canada, with 84,126 MW. Chile ranks 26th, with 7,502 MW.

In generation, China produced 1,392 TWh from water in 2025, according to Ember, more than all of Japan's electricity. The world generated 4,447 TWh of hydropower, 13.9% of its electricity, a share that falls year after year because solar and wind grow faster. This data sheet brings together the capacity ranking, generation, the countries most dependent on water and Chile's place.

The table ranks countries by renewable hydropower capacity at the end of 2025, excluding pumped storage plants, which store energy but do not generate it. 2025 generation comes from Ember and shows how much each country produced with that capacity.

Sources: capacity, IRENA, Renewable Energy Statistics 2026 (IRENASTAT), renewable hydropower, checked November 13, 2026; generation, Ember, Yearly Electricity Data. «No 2025 data» means the country has no 2025 figure in the Ember download.

China added 85,580 MW of hydropower between 2015 and 2025, more than all of Canada's capacity. It has the world's two largest plants, Three Gorges (22,500 MW) and Baihetan (16,000 MW), on the Yangtze and its Jinsha tributary. Even so, water supplies only 13.3% of its electricity because its demand is enormous. The list of the biggest dams is in the world's largest hydropower plant.

The world's renewable hydropower capacity grew from about 1,048 GW in 2015 to 1,236 GW in 2025, 18% more, based on IRENA's country totals (Energía Futura calculation). Generation rose less, from 3,890 to 4,447 TWh, because it depends on rainfall, and its share of world electricity fell from 16.2% to 13.9%, because solar and wind grow much faster.

Source: Ember, Yearly Electricity Data, world total. The generation record is from 2024.

The biggest recent growth outside China is in Ethiopia, which went from 5,221 to 9,214 MW between 2024 and 2025 as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile came online; in Laos, which more than doubled its capacity since 2015 to export power to its neighbors; and in Pakistan.

By share of electricity, the ranking changes completely. Paraguay generates 99.5% from water, thanks to its stakes in Itaipu and Yacyretá; Ethiopia, 96.5%, and Tajikistan, 94.4%. Norway, at 90%, is the developed country most dependent on water. In South America, Ecuador (78%), Colombia (69.1%), Peru (56%) and Brazil (52.1%) are ahead of Chile.

Relying on water has a cost in dry years. Ecuador had scheduled power cuts in 2024 because of drought, and in Chile the 2025 drought forced greater use of coal, as our ranking of the cleanest and dirtiest electricity shows.

Chile has 7,502 MW of hydropower, according to IRENA, including large reservoirs such as Ralco, Pangue, El Toro and Colbún and many run-of-river plants. It was the backbone of its electricity in the 20th century, but today it supplies less than solar. Its output depends on rain and snow: it reached 26.0 TWh in 2024, a wet year, and fell to 19.7 TWh in 2025, 24% less, according to Ember.

Source: Ember, Yearly Electricity Data, Chile. How water returns to the top of the mix in wet months shows in September's generation figures.

In Latin America, Chile ranks 7th by hydropower capacity, behind Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico, Argentina and Paraguay. New projects are few; one under environmental review is the San Carlos plant, 154 MW in the Biobío, which re-entered the assessment system this year.

The table includes every country with renewable hydropower capacity in IRENA at the end of 2025. You can search for a country and sort by capacity or by growth since 2015.

Capacity corresponds to IRENASTAT's renewable hydropower category (reservoir and run-of-river plants, plus the renewable share of mixed plants), excluding pure pumped storage. 2025 figures are those published by IRENA in its September 2026 update. Generation and its share of electricity come from Ember, which covers 92 countries with 2025 hydropower data. The two datasets use different names and methods, which is why some countries have capacity but no 2025 generation.

Energía Futura (2026). «Countries with the most hydropower 2026: world ranking and Chile's place». Updated November 13, 2026. energiafutura.cl/en/news/countries-with-the-most-hydropower-2026-world-ranking-and-chile. Data: IRENA (2026), Renewable Energy Statistics, and Ember (2026), Yearly Electricity Data.

Which country has the most hydropower?

China, with 382,080 MW at the end of 2025 and 1,392 TWh generated in the year, according to IRENA and Ember.

How much hydropower is there in the world?

About 1,236 GW of renewable capacity in 2025, which generated 4,447 TWh, 13.9% of the world's electricity.

Which country depends most on hydropower?

Paraguay, which generates 99.5% of its electricity from water, followed by Ethiopia (96.5%) and Tajikistan (94.4%).

Where does Chile rank in hydropower?

26th in the world, with 7,502 MW, and seventh in Latin America. In 2025 it generated 19.7 TWh, 22.2% of its electricity.

What is the world's largest hydropower plant?

Three Gorges, in China, with 22,500 MW.