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Justify Your Attendance

at POWC 2027

The Power of Water Canada Conference is the sector’s leading annual gathering for waterpower professionals. The event offers direct access to industry experts, emerging technologies, and peer-to‑peer learning that supports both organizational priorities and professional development.

If you need to request approval from your management or Board, the information below will help you clearly outline the value of attending POWC 2027.

Top 5 Tips for Securing Approval

1. Connect Sessions Directly to Your Current Projects

Identify agenda items, workshops, or speakers that support work already underway in your organization. Showing direct relevance strengthens your case.

2. Highlight Opportunities to Earn Professional Development Hours

POWC offers Professional Development Hours for attending the conference and participation in pre-conference workshops – a cost-effective way to meet professional development requirements while gaining sector specific knowledge.

3. Emphasize Specific Value

POWC is uniquely focused on the industry’s regulatory environment, innovations, case studies and operational and maintenance experiences. This makes it more targeted and cost-effective than broader conferences.

4. Highlight Business Building Opportunities

POWC brings operators, suppliers, regulators, municipal representatives, and Indigenous partners together in one place. Emphasize that attending reduces the need for multiple separate meetings and strengthens key relationships.

5. Show Cost Saving Measures Up Front

Demonstrate responsible planning by using Early Bird rates (before December 1, 2026), booking travel early, and selecting cost-effective accommodations such as the POWC hotel rate.

Understanding the Benefits of POWC

Networking: Access to industry leaders, operators, suppliers, and project partners

2027 attendance: Over 525 delegates and more than 85 exhibitors expected to attend.
POWC also offers exclusive discounts for students and young professionals, operators, and Indigenous Communities.

Tools and Technologies: Exposure to new solutions, processes, and innovations shaping today’s waterpower facilities and future development, including:

turbine and generator performance
digital monitoring and automation
civil and structural upgrades
environmental assessment tools
operational efficiency technologies

Best Practices: POWC delivers focused technical programming across operations, maintenance, and lessons learned from within the hydroelectric industry

2027 program: 9 technical sessions, 3 plenaries, and 3 keynote speakers.

Training: Pre-conference workshops and presentations that support professional development and operational improvement

2027 pre-conference workshops take place on Wednesday, May 12, 2027. A separate registration is required.
- "Performance Testing in Practice: From Test Planning to Asset Monitoring" - Presented by KGS Group
  - This pre-conference training course provides owners, operators, and engineers with a practical overview of hydroelectric performance measurement and how it can be applied throughout the asset lifecycle. Participants will learn how unit performance is quantified, selected and recognized per test codes.
- "Operations & Maintenance Essentials" - Presented by Hatch & Sunbird Power Academy
  - An interactive workshop exploring modern hydropower O&M, including workforce development, training, maintenance strategy, inspection planning, and asset reliability. Led by Babar Khan and Marc Mantha, participants will gain practical insights to support safety, operational excellence, and long-term asset performance.

Client and Partner Engagement: Opportunities to meet project partners, collaborators, and future clients

Meet your collegues and potential buisness partners at dedicated networking breaks on the trade show floor and during networking receptions.

Draft Letter to Request Approval

Use the template below as a draft to send to your approving manager.

Dear [Approving Manager],

I am requesting approval to attend the 2027 Power of Water Canada Conference, hosted by the Ontario Waterpower Association in Niagara‑on‑the‑Lake, Ontario on May 12-14, 2027. This event is Canada’s leading forum for operators, developers, suppliers, and policymakers in the waterpower industry.

The conference program directly supports our current initiatives, including [insert topics], and will provide practical insights and case studies that relate to my work. With more than 85 exhibitors, POWC also hosts Canada’s largest waterpower‑specific trade show, offering direct access to technologies, tools, and services that can support our operational and project needs. I will also have access to senior industry experts and peers to discuss challenges, solutions, and emerging opportunities.

I plan to attend sessions focused on [insert sessions], which will help strengthen our approach to [insert reason]. I will prepare a summary of key takeaways and share relevant materials with the team following the event.

Estimated Costs:

Conference Registration: ______

Travel: ______

Hotel: ______

Meals/Incidentals: ______

Total Estimated Cost: ______

Thank you for considering this request. I am available to discuss further and can book travel as soon as approval is received.

Respectfully,

[Name]