The Governor Bento Munhoz da Rocha Netto Hydroelectric Plant, formerly known as Foz do Areia, is

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

and hydroelectric

power plant A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the electricity generation, generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an el ...

on the

Iguazu River __NOTOC__ The Iguazu River ( pt, Rio Iguaçu, br , es, Río Iguazú} ), also called Rio Iguassu, is a river in Brazil and Argentina. It is an important tributary of the Paraná River. The Iguazu River is long, with a drainage basin of . Cou ...

near Foz do Areia in Paraná, Brazil. It is the furthest dam upstream of the

Iguazu Falls Iguazú Falls or Iguaçu Falls ( gn, Chororõ Yguasu , es, Cataratas del Iguazú, links=no ; pt, Cataratas do Iguaçu ) are waterfalls of the Iguazu River on the border of the Argentine province of Misiones and the Brazilian state of Paraná ...

and was constructed between 1976 and 1980. The power station has a capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam. As their main power plant, it is owned and operated by

Copel Copel - Companhia Paranaense de Energia is a Brazilian electric utility company, the largest company of the State of Paraná, founded on October 26, 1954 with ownership control held by the State of Paraná. The Company went public in April 1994 ...

who renamed it after Bento Munhoz da Rocha Netto, governor of Paraná between 1951 and 1955.

History

In May 1973, Copel was awarded the concession contract to construct the dam and by May 1974, various studies had recommended a site near the confluence of the Inguazu and Da Areia Rivers. By August of that year, a design was chosen and in October 1976 after contracts were awarded, construction began. The river was diverted with two diameter and long diversion tunnels. To facilitate the river's diversion, two

cofferdam A cofferdam is an enclosure built within a body of water to allow the enclosed area to be pumped out. This pumping creates a dry working environment so that the work can be carried out safely. Cofferdams are commonly used for construction or re ...

s were constructed, one upstream and one downstream of the site. The upstream cofferdam was high and allowed the diversion of up to of water. The dam began to impound the reservoir in 1980 and by October it was filled and complete. At the time of completion, the dam was the tallest and largest concrete face rock-fill dam in the world. It was also the first of its type to have a reservoir of its size. The techniques to construction the dam were instrumental and an advancement as of fill was placed each month for two years in a row. The stability and integrity of such a large dam with a large reservoir helped bring confidence to its specific design.

Dam

The Bento Munhoz da Rocha Netto Dam is an long and high concrete face rock-fill type. The dam contains a total of material which includes of rock-fill and of concrete. The dam's

spillway A spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of water downstream from a dam or levee, typically into the riverbed of the dammed river itself. In the United Kingdom, they may be known as overflow channels. Spillways ensure th ...

is controlled by four wide and high

tainter gate The Tainter gate is a type of radial arm floodgate used in dams and canal locks to control water flow. It is named for Wisconsin structural engineer Jeremiah Burnham Tainter. A side view of a Tainter gate resembles a slice of pie with the ...

s. It has an capacity and is long and wide. Water is brought towards the power station intake through a channel which is long and wide. The actual power intake structure is high, wide and allows for a maximum reservoir level depletion of . Six wheel-type gates facilitate bring water into the power station. An additional gate exists for maintenance purposes.

Power station

From the intake, six long

penstock A penstock is a sluice or gate or intake structure that controls water flow, or an enclosed pipe that delivers water to hydro turbines and sewerage systems. The term is inherited from the earlier technology of mill ponds and watermills. H ...

s deliver water to the generators as their diameter reduces from . The power station contains four generators for a total installed capacity of . Space for an additional two generators exist and if installed would bring the plant's total installed capacity to .

References

{{Iguazu River dams Energy infrastructure completed in 1980 Hydroelectric power stations in Paraná (state) Dams in Paraná (state) Dams on the Iguazu River Concrete-face rock-fill dams Dams completed in 1980

History

Dam

Power station

See also

References