The Xalalá Hydroelectric Dam is a proposed

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 ...

that will span the

Chixoy River The Chixoy River or Río Chixoy is a river in Guatemala. The river is called Río Negro from its sources in the highlands of Huehuetenango and El Quiché until it reaches the Chixoy hydroelectric dam (located at ), where the Río Salamá and Rio ...

in the municipality of

Ixcán Ixcán is a Municipalities of Guatemala, municipality in the Guatemalan Departments of Guatemala, department of El Quiché. Its administrative centre is the town of Playa Grande Ixcán, Playa Grande. The municipality consists of 176 communities, ...

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

. The US$ 400 million dam's hydroelectric power station will have an installed capacity of 181

MWe The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named in honor o ...

, generating an estimated 886 GWh of electricity per year.

Controversy and funding

Despite the dam's electricity generation potential, there has been strong local opposition to the project. Controversy surrounds the site since it will flood 31.8 km² and displace twelve Q'eqchi' Maya communities. It is a project of the Plan Puebla Panama. In the municipality of Ixcan, of 21,000 people who voted, 91% voted against the creation of the dam. Strong opposition to the project has been credited with the lack of funding for the site. Private funding of the site was halted in April 2007. Despite the government's efforts and interest from foreign investors, plans to finance the project have stopped since.

References

Hydroelectric power stations in Guatemala Proposed hydroelectric power stations Dams in Guatemala Proposed renewable energy power stations in Guatemala {{hydroelectric-power-plant-stub

Controversy and funding

See also

References