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Rye Development: Proving the Long-Term Value of Pumped Hydro
A diagram of the proposed Goldendale project.
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Hydro Leader: Please tell us about your backgrounds and how you came to be in your current positions.
20 | HYDRO LEADER | September 2021
Erik Steimle: I’ve been the vice president of project development at Rye for 5 years now. I have over 20 years of experience in new hydropower development in the United States. I made the transition to the development side of hydropower after working on environmental impact statements and managing water infrastructure projects as a consultant. It’s an important time to be involved in new hydropower, as more renewables get incorporated into the grid across the United States. Ushakar Jha: I’m Rye’s vice president of project engineering. My background is in civil engineering. While doing my masters research in hydraulics and flood control, I got introduced to hydropower. After graduating, I joined a consulting firm. I worked there for a few years in hydro and eventually decided to focus on the business hydroleadermagazine.com
PHOTO COURTESY OF RYE DEVELOPMENT.
ye Development LLC is a lead developer in new hydropower generation and energy storage. Rye is committed to offering low-impact hydropower and pumped storage as environmentally safe and high-value solutions. With many projects soon to be under construction across the United States, Rye is working with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and its Argonne National Laboratory to evaluate the value of future hydropower infrastructure for offtakers and the grid. In this interview, Rye’s vice president of project development, Erik Steimle, and its vice president of project engineering, Ushakar Jha, tell us about the projects Rye is focusing on, including the Goldendale project, and how the lab studies will help further future projects.
