Kaptai Dam

Kaptai Dam
The dam in 2023
Kaptai Dam is located in Bangladesh
Kaptai Dam
Location of Kaptai Dam in Bangladesh
CountryBangladesh
LocationKaptai, Rangamati District
Coordinates22°29′42″N 92°13′30″E / 22.49500°N 92.22500°E / 22.49500; 92.22500
PurposePower
StatusOperational
Construction began1957
Opening date1962
Dam and spillways
Type of damEmbankment
ImpoundsKarnaphuli River
Height45.7 m (150 ft)
Length670.6 m (2,200 ft)
Width (crest)7.6 m (25 ft)
Width (base)45.7 m (150 ft)
Dam volume1,977,000 m3 (69,800,000 cu ft)
Spillway typeControlled, 16 gates
Spillway capacity16,000 m3/s (570,000 cu ft/s)
Reservoir
CreatesKaptai Lake
Total capacity6,477,000,000 m3 (5,251,000 acre⋅ft)
Catchment area11,000 km2 (4,200 sq mi)
Surface area777 km2 (300 sq mi)
Normal elevation33 m (108 ft)
Power Station
Commission date1962, 1982, 1988
Turbines2 x 40 MW (54,000 hp), 3 x 50 MW (67,000 hp) Kaplan-type
Installed capacity230 MW (310,000 hp)

Kaptai Dam (Bengali: কাপ্তাই বাঁধ) is on the Karnaphuli River at Kaptai, 65 km (40 mi) upstream from Chittagong in Rangamati District, Bangladesh. It is an earth-fill embankment dam with a reservoir (known as Kaptai Lake) with water storage capacity of 6,477 million cubic metres (5,251,000 acre⋅ft). The primary purpose of the dam and reservoir was to generate hydroelectric power. Construction was completed in 1962, in then-East Pakistan. The generators in the 230 MW (310,000 hp) Karnafuli Hydroelectric Power Station were commissioned between 1962 and 1988.[1] It is the only hydroelectric power station in Bangladesh.[2]

  1. ^ Bari, M Fazlul (2012). "Dam". In Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A. (eds.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 7 January 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  2. ^ Saila Parveen, I. M. Faisal (21 July 2010). "People versus Power: The Geopolitics of Kaptai Dam in Bangladesh". International Journal of Water Resources Development. 18: 197–208. doi:10.1080/07900620220121756. S2CID 154589647.