| Victoria Dam | |
| Location Map: | Sri Lanka |
| Coordinates: | 7.2414°N 80.7847°W |
| Country: | Sri Lanka |
| Location: | Teldeniya |
| Purpose: | P |
| Status: | O |
| Dam Type: | A |
| Dam Crosses: | Mahaweli River |
| Dam Length: | 5200NaN0 |
| Dam Height Foundation: | 1220NaN0 |
| Dam Width Base: | 250NaN0 |
| Spillway Count: | 8 |
| Spillway Capacity: | 82000NaN0 |
| Res Name: | Victoria Reservoir |
| Res Capacity Total: | 722000000m2 |
| Res Capacity Active: | 689000000m2 |
| Res Catchment: | 18690NaN0 |
| Res Surface: | 230NaN0 |
| Plant Name: | Victoria Power Station |
| Plant Coordinates: | 7.2°N 80.8058°W |
| Plant Turbines: | 3 × 70 MW |
| Plant Capacity: | 210 MW |
| Plant Capacity Factor: | 42.4% |
| Plant Annual Gen: | 780 GWh |
Victoria Dam (Sinhala: වික්ටෝරියා වේල්ල Viktoriya Vella) is an arch dam located 1300NaN0 upstream of the Mahaweli River's mouth and 40NaN0 from Teldeniya. It is named in honor of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
Its main purposes are irrigation and hydroelectric power production. It is the tallest dam in Sri Lanka, and supports a power station, the largest hydroelectric power station in the country. Construction of the dam commenced in 1978, funded by aid granted by the United Kingdom under the patronage of Queen Elizabeth II, was completed during the incumbency of President Junius Richard Jayewardene. the dam was ceremonially opened by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Margaret Thatcher.
The Victoria Dam was constructed under the Accelerated Mahaweli Development Programme (AMDP). The project had been in planning for 30 years but was accelerated in 1977 to address economic difficulties within the country. The plan is designed to irrigate 3650000NaN0 of land and provide 600 MW of electricity. The Victoria Dam was originally proposed in 1964 after studies were completed by Canada's Huntings Technical Services and a team from the United Nations Development Program—Food and Agriculture Organization (UNDP-FAO).[1] Construction of the dam was inaugurated on 14 August 1978, by the then-President Jayewardene with the implementation of the main structures beginning in 1980. Its completion was marked by a ceremony on 12 April 1985. Construction of the dam and tunnel was completed by the British Joint Venture of Balfour Beatty and Edmund Nuttall, while Costain Group carried out the construction of the power station. The consultant engineers on the project was Sir Alexander Gibb & Partners.[2] The dam resettled about 30,000 people — four times the estimate.[3]
The dam measures 1220NaN0 tall, with a crest length of 5200NaN0, crest width of 60NaN0, and a base width of 250NaN0. The dam creates the Victoria Reservoir, which has a surface area of 22.71NaN1, gross storage capacity of 722000000m2, and a catchment area of 18690NaN0.[4]
Water from the dam is fed to the powerhouse at via a 56460NaN0 long tunnel, which houses three penstocks of 6.21NaN1 diameter. These penstocks created a net head of 1900NaN0, feeding three turbines, which are capable of generating up to of electrical energy annually.
The dam consists of eight spillways, each with a width and height of 12.50NaN0 and 6.51NaN1, which automatically opens when water levels are high. The dam's gates, which need power only to close, won an award for "Innovative Design in Civil Engineering" by the Institution of Civil Engineers. The total effective width of the spillways is 1000NaN0, allowing a maximum discharge of 82000NaN0. Two additional low-level sluices at the base of the dam allows the purging of accumulated silts behind the dam.[4]