The power generation energy efficiency of a hydropower plant is a crucial factor that significantly impacts its performance and sustainable development. Accurate and efficient evaluation of power generation efficiency is necessary if hydropower enterprises are to improve their energy efficiency. We propose a method for evaluating the power generation efficiency of hydropower plants based on integrated data envelopment analysis (DEA) and DEA cross-efficiency, combining self-evaluation and peer-evaluation paradigms to assess the efficiency of hydropower plants. Based on the main factors affecting hydropower generation, an evaluation model for power generation efficiency is constructed. The inputs of this model include monthly inflow water volume, monthly inflow water flow, monthly reservoir water storage volume, monthly reservoir water level, and the average water consumption rate for power generation, while the output is monthly power generation volume. Subsequently, the energy efficiency of the hydropower plant is analyzed and evaluated using this model. The results show that integrating of the DEA model and the DEA cross-efficiency model faciliates effective evaluation of the power generation energy efficiency of hydropower plants. Furthermore, by means of the reasonable allocation of input slack variables and output surplus variables, the optimal benchmark for the power generation status of hydropower plants can be determined and improved. This enable less effective months of the power plant to also achieve effective power generation.
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