The Virgen Dam is an

embankment dam An embankment dam is a large artificial dam. It is typically created by the placement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil or rock. It has a semi-pervious waterproof natural covering for its surface and ...

on the Viejo River near the town of El Hato de La Virgen in

Matagalpa Department Matagalpa () is a department in central Nicaragua. It covers an area of 6,804 km2 and has a population of 600,057 (2021 est). The capital is the city of Matagalpa with a population of about 111,000. Matagalpa is the second largest region o ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

. The primary purpose of the dam is

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

power generation and it supports the

run-of-the-river Run-of-river hydroelectricity (ROR) or run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation plant whereby little or no water storage is provided. Run-of-the-river power plants may have no water storage at all or a limited amou ...

Carlos Fonesca (Santa Barbara) Plant. The dam and power station were completed in 1972. Water from the dam is diverted along the left bank of the river through a long channel before being piped underground over to the power plant near Santa Barbara on the Viejo River. The plant contains two

Francis turbine The Francis turbine is a type of water turbine. It is an inward-flow reaction turbine that combines radial and axial flow concepts. Francis turbines are the most common water turbine in use today, and can achieve over 95% efficiency. The proces ...

-generators. The difference in elevation between the dam and power station affords a

hydraulic head Hydraulic head or piezometric head is a specific measurement of liquid pressure above a vertical datum., 410 pages. See pp. 43–44., 650 pages. See p. 22. It is usually measured as a liquid surface elevation, expressed in units of length, ...

(water drop) of . In 1998 heavy rains and flooding from

Hurricane Mitch Hurricane Mitch is the second-deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record, causing over 11,000 fatalities in Central America in 1998, including approximately 7,000 in Honduras and 3,800 in Nicaragua due to cataclysmic flooding from the slow motion ...

severely damaged the Mancotal and El Dorado Dams, over-topping their

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 tha ...

s and nearly destroying the dams. The Virgen Dam was destroyed but later rebuilt.

References

{{stack, {{Portal, Nicaragua, Water, Renewable energy Dams completed in 1972 Energy infrastructure completed in 1972 Dams in Nicaragua Hydroelectric power stations in Nicaragua Matagalpa Department Run-of-the-river power stations Dam failures in North America 1988 disasters in North America Man-made disasters in Nicaragua