Alqueva Dam

Alqueva Dam
Downstream face of the dam
Location of Alqueva Dam in Portugal
Official name	Barragem do Alqueva
Country	Portugal
Location	Alqueva/Moura
Coordinates	38°11′51″N 7°29′47″W / 38.19750°N 7.49639°W / 38.19750; -7.49639
Purpose	Water supply, irrigation, power, tourism
Status	Operational
Construction began	1995
Opening date	2002
Construction cost	US$1.7 billion
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Arch
Impounds	Guadiana
Height	96 m (315 ft)
Length	458 m (1,503 ft)
Width (crest)	7 m (23 ft)
Dam volume	687,000 m3 (898,562 cu yd)
Reservoir
Inactive capacity	4,150,000,000 m3 (3,360,000 acre⋅ft)
Catchment area	250 km2 (97 sq mi)
Power Station
Commission date	2004, 2013[1]
Type	Conventional/Pumped-storage
Turbines	4 x 129.6 MW (173,800 hp) reversible Francis-type
Installed capacity	518.4 MW (695,200 hp)

The Alqueva Dam is an arch dam and the centrepiece of the Alqueva Multipurpose Project. It impounds the River Guadiana, on the border of Beja and Évora Districts in the south of Portugal. The dam takes its name from the town of Alqueva on its right bank. It creates a large reservoir with an inter-annual regulation capacity from which water may be distributed throughout the region. The dam was completed in 2002, and its reservoir reached its full level for the first time in 2010. The 518.4-megawatt (695,200 hp) power station was commissioned in two stages, stage I in 2004 and stage II in 2013. The Alqueva Dam is the largest dam and artificial lake (250 square kilometres (97 sq mi)) in Western Europe.^[2]