Pichi Picún Leufú Dam

The Pichi Picún Leufú Dam (in Spanish "Embalse Pichi Picún Leufú") is the third of five dams on the Limay River in northwestern Argentine Patagonia (the Comahue region), near the town of Piedra del Águila, Neuquén, at coord|40|40|S|69|59|W|.

The dam is used for the generation of hydroelectricity and for the regulation of the flow. It measures 45 m in height and 1,045 m in length, and is made of 1,562,000 m³ of loose materials. It was built by the Sweden-based multinational Skanska, and inaugurated in 2000.

The reservoir has an area of 19 km² and a volume of 197 million m³ in maximum normal conditions.

The hydroelectric plant has an installed power of 261 MW and generates an annual average of 1,080 GWh. It employs three vertical-axis Kaplan turbines.

References

* Secretaría de Energía. República Argentina. [http://energia.mecon.gov.ar/contenidos/contenidos.asp?id=578 Embalse Pichi Picún Leufú] .
* [http://www.orsep.gov.ar/region-comahue.htm Región Comahue] .
* Skanska LA. [http://www.skanska.com.ar/espmp001_04.html Central Hidroeléctrica Pichi Picún Leufú] .