Potrerillos Dam


Potrerillos Dam is located on the Mendoza River, in Argentina's Potrerillos Valley. The dam was built between 1999 and 2003 by a consortium consisting of Industrias Metalúrgicas Pescarmona and Cartellone to provide flood control, hydroelectricity and irrigation water. The dam cost US$ 312 million to construct. Located about southwest of Mendoza, the concrete-faced rockfill dam is high and long, impounding the long Potrerillos Reservoir.
The dam and reservoir have lost significant storage capacity due to the high silt content of the Mendoza River. When the reservoir was first filled in 2003, the capacity was estimated at, with a total surface area of. This has since decreased to with a surface area of. The reduction in capacity has threatened the flood control capability of the dam, with the concern that the emergency spillway may become inadequate to pass high flood flows as the reservoir loses its capability to retain them.

Power plants

Water from the reservoir is diverted into a series of two hydroelectric power plants, Power Station Cacheuta and Power Station Álvarez Condarco, with a combined capacity of. From the dam, a tunnel furnishes water to four Francis turbines at Cacheuta with a capacity of. The water then flows through a second tunnel to power three Francis turbines at Álvarez Condarco with a capacity. The entire hydroelectric complex generates upwards of 850 million kilowatt hours per year, or 20% of the electrical consumption in Mendoza Province.

Accidents

In December 2015, A helicopter which was being used for filming an MTV reality show The Challenge has crashed into the reservoir killing the pilot and a technician.

Works cited