Alto Tâmega Dam Explained

Alto Tâmega Dam
Name Official:Barragem do Alto Tâmega
Location Map:Portugal
Coordinates:41.5746°N -7.7311°W
Country:Portugal
Location:municipalities Ribeira de Pena and Vila Pouca de Aguiar, Vila Real District
Purpose:Power
Status:Under construction
Opening:2024
Dam Type:Concrete double curvature arch dam
Dam Crosses:Tâmega River
Dam Height:106m (348feet)
Dam Length:334m (1,096feet)
Plant Capacity:160MW
Plant Annual Gen:139 GWh

Alto Tâmega Dam (Portuguese: Barragem do Alto Tâmega|links=no) is a concrete double curvature arch dam on the Tâmega River. It is located in the municipalities of Ribeira de Pena and Vila Pouca de Aguiar, in Vila Real District, Portugal.

It is part of the wider Tâmega Electricity-Generating Group formed of 3 dams and 3 plants

Iberdrola signed a 70-year concession with the Government of Portugal in July 2014 for the design, construction and operation of three projects: Alto Tâmega, Daivões and Gouvães dams.

Construction of the dam will be completed in 2024.

Dam

Alto Tâmega Dam is a 106.5 m tall and 334 long double-curvature concrete.

Reservoir

The reservoir surface area for the dam has 7.4 km2.

Power plant

The generating unit of the dam consists of two 80MW turbine units with a maximum flow rate of 200m³/s producing 139GWh of electricity a year. The dam contains two lateral spillways with combined discharge capacity of 1,825m³/s, which protect the dam from over-topping.

See also