Imagine you have a river, canal, or even a wastewater pipe with a bit of water flow — not enough for a big dam, but enough to spin a small turbine. Until now, putting a turbine there cost too much and took too long to pay off. A Spanish engineering team built a compact, variable-speed turbine system you can install in just 1-2 days, cutting construction work by 80%. It pays for itself in about 4 years and runs at a steady 75% efficiency, squeezing real electricity out of water drops that used to be ignored.
Small hydropower sites with low water head are everywhere — canals, treatment plants, fish farms — but conventional turbines are too expensive and complex to install there. The upfront investment is huge, construction takes weeks, and efficiency at micro scale is poor. This means gigawatts of potential clean energy sit untapped because the economics simply don't work.
A real-scale prototype of a regenerative variable-speed turbine system, fully installed and commissioned as a demonstrator plant. The project delivered 14 total deliverables including the optimized turbine manufacturing and the working prototype with all components integrated.
If you are a small hydro operator dealing with sites that are too low-head or too small to justify conventional turbine installations — this project developed a variable-speed turbine system that installs in 1-2 days, cuts civil works by 80%, and delivers 75% efficiency with a 4-year payback period. It turns previously unprofitable low-head sites into revenue-generating assets.
If you are an aquaculture company with constant water flow through your facilities — this project built a turbine system specifically designed for low-head water channels. The 1-2 day installation means minimal disruption to your operations, and the 80% reduction in civil works keeps upfront costs manageable. You recover your investment in 4 years while generating electricity from water you already move.
If you run a wastewater treatment plant and your outflow energy goes to waste — this project created a compact turbine that captures that energy at 75% efficiency. Installation takes 1-2 days with 80% less construction compared to conventional hydro, so you avoid shutdowns. The 4-year payback means you start profiting from water you were already treating.
The project reports a payback period of 4 years for end clients. Exact unit pricing is not disclosed in the project data, but the 80% reduction in civil works compared to conventional installations significantly lowers the total cost of ownership.
The project built a real-scale prototype that has been commissioned, not just a lab model. The system is designed for mini-hydroelectric plants, aquaculture facilities, and wastewater treatment plants. The target is small hydropower (SHP) sites — by definition lower capacity than large hydro, but the technology is production-ready at that scale.
The project includes IP assessment as part of its Phase II work. TECNOTURBINES S.L. is the coordinator and likely IP holder. Licensing or purchase terms would need to be negotiated directly with them.
Based on project data, installation takes between 1 and 2 days. This is possible because the system reduces civil works by 80% compared to conventional turbine installations. The turbine uses a compact, integrated design that minimizes on-site construction.
The project reports a constant efficiency of 75% thanks to its regenerative variable speed control system. Conventional micro turbines often lose efficiency at variable flow rates, but this system adapts its speed to maintain output even when water conditions change.
The project objective states the goal was to improve, integrate, implement and certify the product. A real-scale prototype with all components was installed and commissioned. The project closed in 2017, so commercial availability would need to be confirmed with the coordinator.
This is a lean, all-industry consortium of 2 Spanish SMEs — TECNOTURBINES S.L. as coordinator and one other partner. With 100% industry participation and zero academic partners, the project was clearly built for commercialization, not research. Both partners are SMEs, meaning decisions are fast and the technology was developed with real market constraints in mind. The single-country setup (Spain) may limit initial market reach, but the small team size kept the project focused on delivering a working product rather than producing academic papers.
TECNOTURBINES S.L. is a Spanish SME — contact them through their company website or via SciTransfer for a facilitated introduction.
Want to explore licensing this turbine technology or deploying it at your facility? SciTransfer can connect you directly with the development team and provide a tailored briefing.
