Itá Hydroelectric Power Plant
Encyclopedia
The Itá Hydroelectric Power Plant is a dam
and hydroelectric power plant on the Uruguay River
near Itá
on the border of Santa Catarina
and Rio Grande do Sul
, Brazil
. The power station has a 1,450 MW capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam
. It is owned and operated by Tractebel Energia
and produces the equivalent of 60% of the energy consumed in Santa Catarina.
The Itá Hydroelectric Power Plant is a dam
and hydroelectric power plant on the Uruguay River
near Itá
on the border of Santa Catarina
and Rio Grande do Sul
, Brazil
. The power station has a 1,450 MW capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam
. It is owned and operated by Tractebel Energia
and produces the equivalent of 60% of the energy consumed in Santa Catarina.
The Itá Hydroelectric Power Plant is a dam
and hydroelectric power plant on the Uruguay River
near Itá
on the border of Santa Catarina
and Rio Grande do Sul
, Brazil
. The power station has a 1,450 MW capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam
. It is owned and operated by Tractebel Energia
and produces the equivalent of 60% of the energy consumed in Santa Catarina.
with a crest elevation of 375.5 m (1,232 ft) above sea level. The dam's reservoir has a capacity of 5100000000 cubic metre, surface area of 141 square kilometre and catchment area of 45800 square kilometre. The dam supports two spillways, one of its right abutment with six floodgate
s and another on the ridge to the dam's west, just south of the power plant which has 4 floodgates. Each gate measures 21.8 m (71.5 ft) wide and 18 m (59.1 ft) tall and in total, both spillways have a maximum capacity of 49940 m3/s. Also on the ridge is the power plant's intake and three axillary dikes to support the reservoir level. The power plant intake is 84.5 m (277.2 ft) wide and contains five gates that allow water to enter the five penstock
s that are 8 m (26.2 ft) in diameter and average 197 m (646.3 ft) in length.
s. The first generator was commissioned in July 2000 and four more later that year with the last generator being commissioned in March 2001.
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
and hydroelectric power plant on the Uruguay River
Uruguay River
The Uruguay River is a river in South America. It flows from north to south and makes boundary with Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay, separating some of the Argentine provinces of the Mesopotamia from the other two countries...
near Itá
Itá, Santa Catarina
Itá, Santa Catarina is a town and municipality in the state of Santa Catarina in the South region of Brazil.-References:...
on the border of Santa Catarina
Santa Catarina (state)
Santa Catarina is a state in southern Brazil with one of the highest standards of living in Latin America. Its capital is Florianópolis, which mostly lies on the Santa Catarina Island. Neighbouring states are Rio Grande do Sul to the south and Paraná to the north. It is bounded on the east by...
and Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil, and the state with the fifth highest Human Development Index in the country. In this state is located the southernmost city in the country, Chuí, on the border with Uruguay. In the region of Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul, the largest wine...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. The power station has a 1,450 MW capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam
Embankment dam
An embankment dam is a massive artificial water barrier. It is typically created by the emplacement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil, sand, clay and/or rock. It has a semi-permanent waterproof natural covering for its surface, and a dense, waterproof...
. It is owned and operated by Tractebel Energia
Tractebel Energia
Tractebel Energia is a major Brazilian utility company, headquartered in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina. It is the largest private electricity producer in Brazil. Its 11 plants, six of them hydroelectric and the remainder thermal, have an installed capacity of 6,977 MW in operations ave an...
and produces the equivalent of 60% of the energy consumed in Santa Catarina.
The Itá Hydroelectric Power Plant is a dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
and hydroelectric power plant on the Uruguay River
Uruguay River
The Uruguay River is a river in South America. It flows from north to south and makes boundary with Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay, separating some of the Argentine provinces of the Mesopotamia from the other two countries...
near Itá
Itá, Santa Catarina
Itá, Santa Catarina is a town and municipality in the state of Santa Catarina in the South region of Brazil.-References:...
on the border of Santa Catarina
Santa Catarina (state)
Santa Catarina is a state in southern Brazil with one of the highest standards of living in Latin America. Its capital is Florianópolis, which mostly lies on the Santa Catarina Island. Neighbouring states are Rio Grande do Sul to the south and Paraná to the north. It is bounded on the east by...
and Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil, and the state with the fifth highest Human Development Index in the country. In this state is located the southernmost city in the country, Chuí, on the border with Uruguay. In the region of Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul, the largest wine...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. The power station has a 1,450 MW capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam
Embankment dam
An embankment dam is a massive artificial water barrier. It is typically created by the emplacement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil, sand, clay and/or rock. It has a semi-permanent waterproof natural covering for its surface, and a dense, waterproof...
. It is owned and operated by Tractebel Energia
Tractebel Energia
Tractebel Energia is a major Brazilian utility company, headquartered in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina. It is the largest private electricity producer in Brazil. Its 11 plants, six of them hydroelectric and the remainder thermal, have an installed capacity of 6,977 MW in operations ave an...
and produces the equivalent of 60% of the energy consumed in Santa Catarina.
The Itá Hydroelectric Power Plant is a dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
and hydroelectric power plant on the Uruguay River
Uruguay River
The Uruguay River is a river in South America. It flows from north to south and makes boundary with Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay, separating some of the Argentine provinces of the Mesopotamia from the other two countries...
near Itá
Itá, Santa Catarina
Itá, Santa Catarina is a town and municipality in the state of Santa Catarina in the South region of Brazil.-References:...
on the border of Santa Catarina
Santa Catarina (state)
Santa Catarina is a state in southern Brazil with one of the highest standards of living in Latin America. Its capital is Florianópolis, which mostly lies on the Santa Catarina Island. Neighbouring states are Rio Grande do Sul to the south and Paraná to the north. It is bounded on the east by...
and Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil, and the state with the fifth highest Human Development Index in the country. In this state is located the southernmost city in the country, Chuí, on the border with Uruguay. In the region of Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul, the largest wine...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. The power station has a 1,450 MW capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam
Embankment dam
An embankment dam is a massive artificial water barrier. It is typically created by the emplacement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil, sand, clay and/or rock. It has a semi-permanent waterproof natural covering for its surface, and a dense, waterproof...
. It is owned and operated by Tractebel Energia
Tractebel Energia
Tractebel Energia is a major Brazilian utility company, headquartered in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina. It is the largest private electricity producer in Brazil. Its 11 plants, six of them hydroelectric and the remainder thermal, have an installed capacity of 6,977 MW in operations ave an...
and produces the equivalent of 60% of the energy consumed in Santa Catarina.
Background
Construction on Itá originally began in 1980 but was halted in 1987 because of financial conditions. In 1995, construction recommenced after a consortium was formed and the dam was complete in 2000. Most of the 6,000 people that were in the town of Itá were relocated to a new area above the reservoir.The dam
The Itá Dam is a 880 m (2,887.1 ft) long and 125 m (410.1 ft) high concrete face rock-fill embankment damEmbankment dam
An embankment dam is a massive artificial water barrier. It is typically created by the emplacement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil, sand, clay and/or rock. It has a semi-permanent waterproof natural covering for its surface, and a dense, waterproof...
with a crest elevation of 375.5 m (1,232 ft) above sea level. The dam's reservoir has a capacity of 5100000000 cubic metre, surface area of 141 square kilometre and catchment area of 45800 square kilometre. The dam supports two spillways, one of its right abutment with six floodgate
Floodgate
Floodgates are adjustable gates used to control water flow in flood barriers, reservoir, river, stream, or levee systems. They may be designed to set spillway crest heights in dams, to adjust flow rates in sluices and canals, or they may be designed to stop water flow entirely as part of a levee or...
s and another on the ridge to the dam's west, just south of the power plant which has 4 floodgates. Each gate measures 21.8 m (71.5 ft) wide and 18 m (59.1 ft) tall and in total, both spillways have a maximum capacity of 49940 m3/s. Also on the ridge is the power plant's intake and three axillary dikes to support the reservoir level. The power plant intake is 84.5 m (277.2 ft) wide and contains five gates that allow water to enter the five penstock
Penstock
A penstock is a sluice or gate or intake structure that controls water flow, or an enclosed pipe that delivers water to hydraulic turbines and sewerage systems. It is a term that has been inherited from the technology of wooden watermills....
s that are 8 m (26.2 ft) in diameter and average 197 m (646.3 ft) in length.
Power plant
The above ground power station is 172.5 m (565.9 ft) long and 57 m (187 ft) wide and contains five 290 MW generators powered by Francis turbineFrancis turbine
The Francis turbine is a type of water turbine that was developed by James B. Francis in Lowell, Massachusetts. It is an inward-flow reaction turbine that combines radial and axial flow concepts....
s. The first generator was commissioned in July 2000 and four more later that year with the last generator being commissioned in March 2001.
See also
- Barra Grande Hydroelectric Power PlantBarra Grande Hydroelectric Power PlantThe Barra Grande Hydroelectric Power Plant is a dam and hydroelectric power plant on the Pelotas River near Celso Ramos on the border of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The power station has a 708 MW capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam, the...
- Machadinho Hydroelectric Power PlantMachadinho Hydroelectric Power PlantThe Machadinho Hydroelectric Power Plant is a dam and hydroelectric power plant on the Pelotas River near Machadinho on the border of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The power station has a 1,140 MW capacity and is supplied with water by a concrete face rock-fill embankment dam...
- List of power stations in Brazil