The use of hydroelectric potential and the protection of the river ecosystem are two contrasting aspects that arise in the management of the same resource, generating conflicts between different stakeholders. The purpose of the paper is to develop a multi-level decision-making tool, able to support energy planning, with specific reference to the construction of hydropower plants in mountain areas. Starting from a real-world problem concerning the basin of the Sesia Valley (Italy), an evaluation framework based on the combined use of Multicriteria Evaluation and Stakeholders Analysis is proposed in the study. The results of the work show that the methodology is able to grant participated decisions through a multi-stakeholders traceable and transparent assessment process, to highlight the important elements of the decision problem and to support the definition of future design guidelines. (c) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.