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When a hydraulic pump operates in reverse mode i.e. as a turbine, it is termed as PAT. With the help of a connected induction motor which works as a generator, PAT generates electricity (Agarwal 2012) opposite to what a pump does. Worldwide, pumps are produced at a massive scale, so if they are used as turbines, then it comes with many benefits such as reduced dimensions, simple maintenance along with easy availability of spare parts. PAT is 5–10 times cheaper than the conventional turbines along with low installation cost (Novara et al. 2017). Using PAT in small hydro plants having installed capacity <100 kW makes them cost‐effective as the cost of a turbo‐generator unit is normally 35% of the total cost of the plant (Ogayar and Vidal 2009). Along with many advantages over conventional turbine, PATs have some disadvantages also, such as lower/lesser peak efficiency, design and operation uncertainties and lack of in‐built regulation devices. At the ground level, contribution of PATs in the market is very small partially due to lack of information or awareness from its manufactures and hydropower consulting firms (Kougias et al. 2019). PATs find its significant application in rural and remote off‐grid power generation projects where conventional turbines cannot be used due to high cost and low availability (Agarwal 2012).

In addition to the evolution in technology in small‐scale hydropower plants to harness more energy, there is an opportunity of development in existing small dams. Some small dams, established in rural areas, are non‐powered dams as the aim was to fulfil other needs of rural areas such as irrigation and drinking water supply (Kougias et al. 2014). Thus, the transformation of small dams to small hydropower plants provides a good opportunity for power generation along with the reduction in cost and saving time.