Northbrook has been in the hydroelectric power business for over 30 years. We currently operate 26 hydropower facilities for a variety of owners, including our own companies.  As an operator and owner of hydropower facilities, Northbrook’s management philosophy is uniquely shaped by an innate understanding of an owner’s priorities and needs.

Our clients and investors benefit greatly from this view of hydropower operations through an owner’s lens, as well as from the expertise of our hydro-savvy team of specialists in engineering, operations, regulatory, environmental, finance and accounting, and our vast network of hydropower industry relationships.

Northbrook’s experience and expertise also extends to the sourcing, due diligence, acquisition, development and construction management of hydropower projects.  Investing alongside our equity partners, we have transacted with public and private companies, including independent power producers, investor-owned utilities, manufacturers, counties and municipalities.

We identify and acquire risk-tolerable assets via private equity and project debt financing.  Through our hands-on management, Northbrook has particular proficiency enhancing the value of hydropower projects to increase risk-adjusted returns and firm value.

We produce results for our hydropower clients by creating cost-effective maintenance strategies that maximize their returns and reduce costs over the lifetime of their assets.

We do this safely, efficiently and in compliance with client needs, as well as state, local and federal laws and regulations. We emphasize preventative maintenance, and react quickly to unplanned events caused by weather conditions or equipment failure. Preventative maintenance includes daily routine inspections and equipment servicing, instrument readings, inspections checklists, and working with outside contractors on major unit overhauls and other civil, mechanical and electrical work. Safety is our priority, so all team members are trained and re-trained to mitigate health and safety risks on the job site.

Our schedules typically require a combination of daily site visits, on-call rotations and all hands on deck when an emergency response is warranted.

Just as our clients are unique, so too are the hydropower sites. Facilities in the Northeast are typically challenged by frazil ice, zebra mussels inhibit operations in Michigan, surface ice degrades head in the Midwest, and sedimentation clogs intakes and increases turbine maintenance in California and the Carolinas. Hydro sites can be seasonal (snow pack dependent), requiring all routine and major maintenance to be completed prior to the short operating season in order to capture all revenues. Other factors affecting daily operations can include coordination with US Army Corp of Engineers operations, working closely with local authorities and owners of structures in close proximity to high hazard hydro facilities, and operating within strict parameters in sensitivity to environmental requirements.

Our experience in operations, maintenance, repair and capital improvements, derived from operating a geographically and technologically diverse hydropower fleet and workforce for more than 30 years, invariably results in improved generation output accompanied by reduced risk, equipment breakdown, outage durations and cost.  And by offering a proper balance of plant investment in line with revenue & cost streams over the life of the assets, the end result is a high, sustainable level of return to the facility owner.

Capital intensive, long-lived hydropower assets demand best-of-breed operations and maintenance practices to realize desired investment returns.

An Owner’s Goals Include:

1. Reduce plant outages to maximize yield.

2. Avoid equipment failure at lowest cost.

3. Align business incentives with plant performance, reliability and availability.

4. Effectively allocate labor resources and use of inventory.

An Owner’s Challenges Include:

1. Hiring freezes and budget cuts that are at odds with aging equipment in need of maintenance.

2. Too little maintenance results in unplanned downtime and collateral equipment damage.

3. Aging facilities are challenged by rapid technology change.

4. Aging plant personnel creates loss of institutional knowledge.

5. Over time, facilities contain a mix of old and new equipment that have differing operational and maintenance requirements.

6. Regulatory (FERC) and environmental health and safety requirements are consuming disproportionate levels of resources.

Our core objective is to increase predictable cash flows by improving availability and productivity, while reducing long-term costs.  This is accomplished by implementing asset management, operations and maintenance strategies tailored to your hydropower asset(s).  Put simply: we perform The Right Work On The Right Equipment At The Right Time.

Direct benefits to you:

1. The range and depth of our internal resources will reduce your need to engage third-party consultants and engineers.

2. Economies of learning.  With the volume and repetition of challenges and solutions at numerous plants, our learning rate results in improved performance, reduced mistakes and increased productivity.

3. Your assets have the full attention and dedication of our specialists providing regulatory, financial, operations, maintenance, asset management, and human resource services.

4. Access to our vast network of machinists and fabricaters to repair equipment no longer serviceable by OEMs.