The El Chocón Dam () is the fourth of the five

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, aqua ...

s on the Limay River in the northwestern

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

Patagonia Patagonia () is a geographical region that includes parts of Argentina and Chile at the southern end of South America. The region includes the southern section of the Andes mountain chain with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers ...

(the

Comahue Comahue is a sub-region of Argentina slightly to the south of the country's centre that covers the northern part of Argentine Patagonia and includes the provinces of Argentina, provinces of Neuquén Province, Neuquén and Río Negro Province, Rí ...

region), at

above mean sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

. El Chocón Cerros Colorados is on the Limay River at about upstream of its confluence with the Neuquén River. El Chocón Cerros Colorados is used to regulate the flow of the Limay River, for

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...

, and for the generation of

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

. Its

power station 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 electr ...

is the largest hydroelectric power plant in Patagonia, with a capacity of . It was built by the state-owned company Hidronor (Hidroeléctrica Norpatagónica). It started operating in 1973 and achieved full capacity in 1978. In the period 1974–1995, it produced an annual average of . In 1993 it was

privatized Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...

, with an exploitation concession granted to Hidroeléctrica El Chocón S. A. While the formal name of the project is ''Embalse Ezequiel Ramos Mexía'', in common use it ended up acquiring the name of the settlement that served as the construction's base of operations, Villa El Chocón (a small town, population 957, as of 2001). El Chocón is part of a larger engineering scheme that also includes the Cerros Colorados Complex, on the Neuquén River. The Hydroelectric Complex which holds El Chocón and Arroyito Hydroelectric Power Plants, is located in the region known as

, which is formed by the Argentine provinces of Río Negro and

Neuquén Neuquén (; ) is the capital city of the Argentine province of Neuquén and of the Confluencia Department, located in the east of the province. It occupies a strip of land west of the confluence of the Limay and Neuquén rivers which form t ...

and the southern area of the Buenos Aires and La Pampa provinces.

Technical details

The dam is made of earth, with a

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

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 ...

. About of materials were used. It measures in length. Its maximum height over the river bed is . The

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

has a maximum area of , a mean depth of (maximum ), and a maximum volume of . It is used for

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...

, sport

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

and other forms of recreation by locals and tourists. The power plant has six vertical

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 pro ...

s, with a nominal power of each, which rotate at . The apparent powers are for each generator and for each

transformer In electrical engineering, a transformer is a passive component that transfers electrical energy from one electrical circuit to another circuit, or multiple Electrical network, circuits. A varying current in any coil of the transformer produces ...

. Material: Hidroeléctrica El Chocón S.A.

External links

Structural specifications of the dam
*
Fact Sheet on El Chocon Hydroelectric Power Plant from Global Energy Observatory

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chocon Dam, El Dams completed in 1973 Energy infrastructure completed in 1973 Energy infrastructure completed in 1978 Dams in Argentina Hydroelectric power stations in Argentina Buildings and structures in Río Negro Province Buildings and structures in Neuquén Province Dams on the Limay River

Technical details

See also

External links

References