Ituango Dam | |
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Official name | Pescadero-Ituango "José Tejada Sáenz" |
Country | Colombia |
Location | Ituango |
Coordinates | 7°07′50.04″N 75°39′48.7″W / 7.1305667°N 75.663528°W |
Status | Under construction |
Construction began | 2011 |
Opening date | 2022 (2 turbines)[1]) |
Construction cost | US$3.8 billion |
Dam and spillways | |
Type of dam | Embankment, earth-fill clay core |
Impounds | Cauca River |
Height | 225 m (738 ft) |
Dam volume | 19,000,000 m3 (670,000,000 cu ft) |
Spillway type | Service, gate controlled |
Spillway capacity | 22,600 m3/s (800,000 cu ft/s) |
Reservoir | |
Total capacity | 2,720,000,000 m3 (2,210,000 acre⋅ft) |
Active capacity | 980,000,000 m3 (790,000 acre⋅ft) |
Surface area | 38 km2 (15 sq mi) |
Maximum length | 127 km (79 mi) |
Power Station | |
Operator(s) | EPM Ituango |
Hydraulic head | 197 m (646 ft) (nominal) |
Turbines | 8 x 307 MW (412,000 hp) Francis type |
Installed capacity | 2,456 MW (3,294,000 hp) (planned) |
Annual generation | 9,200 GWh (33,000 TJ) (firm) |
Website http://www.hidroituango.com.co (Spanish) |
The Ituango Dam, also referred to as the Pescadero-Ituango Dam or Hidroituango, is an embankment dam currently under construction on the Cauca River near Ituango in Antioquia Department, Colombia. The primary purpose of the project is hydroelectric power generation and its power plant will have an installed capacity of 2,456 megawatts (3,294,000 hp) if completed. Preliminary construction on the dam began in September 2011 and the power plant was expected to begin operations in late 2018, but will not after heavy rainfall and landslides in April/May 2018 blocked the river's diversion tunnel, threatening a breach of the dam.[2] If completed, it will be the largest power station in Colombia.[3]