Hydrometeorological monitoring for hydropower reservoirs in remote areas

Operational hydrometric network is an essential element in hydropower reservoir operation. The data collected, to be used for reservoir management and decision making require high reliability with automatic data monitoring, processing and retrieval. However, the unique characteristic of every catchment and operational requirements raises the need to balance hydrometeorological monitoring objectives and site desirability. This paper describes the overall component of the Temengor Inflow Forecasting System developed as part of a decision support module for optimised hydropower dam operation for the Temengor Hydropower Dam system in Malaysia. The equipment used and challenges faced in deployment in a densely forested catchment in the Sungei Perak basin are discussed. The siting of the hydrometeorological network was made based on World Meterological Organisation guidelines and state of the art communication technology was utilized in overcoming accessibility to our monitoring sites. The real time data on power generation, river and reservoir level, rainfall that were collected are presented in this paper.