Dez Dam

Dez Dam
250px The Dez Dam
Location of Dez Dam in Iran
Country	Iran
Location	Khuzestan-Andimeshk
Coordinates
Status	Operational
Construction began	1959
Opening date	1963
Owner(s)	Khuzestan Water & Power Authority
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Concrete arch dam
Impounds	Dez River
Height	203 m (666 ft)
Length	380 m (1,247 ft)
Width (crest)	27 m (89 ft)
Spillway capacity	600 m3/s (21,000 cu ft/s)
Reservoir
Total capacity	3.34 km3 (2,710,000 acre·ft)
Surface area	64.9 km2 (25.1 sq mi)
Power station
Commission date	1962-1970
Turbines	8 x 65 MW
Installed capacity	520 MW
Annual generation	1,783 GWh

The Dez Dam (Persian: سد دز‎‎) is an arch dam on the Dez River in the southwestern province of Khuzestan, Iran. It is about 26 km (16 mi) north of Andimeshk. It was built between 1959 and 1963 by an Italian consortium and is owned by the Khuzestan Water & Power Authority. The dam is 203 metres (666 ft) high, making it one of the highest in the country, and has a reservoir capacity of 3,340,000,000 m³ (2,710,000 acre·ft). At the time of construction the Dez Dam was Iran's biggest development project. The primary purpose of the dam is hydroelectric power production and irrigation. It has an associated 520 MW power station and its reservoir helps irrigate up to 80,500 ha (199,000 acres) of farmland. US$42 million of the cost to construct the dam came from the World Bank.

Background

Impregilo was involved with building the Dez Dam. Plans for the dam were finalized in 1957 and construction began in 1959. In 1962 the first generator was commissioned. In 1963 the dam was complete with two of the eight 65 MW Francis turbine generators commissioned. The remaining six were commissioned by 1970. In the late 1970s the irrigation of the project had reached 80,500 ha (199,000 acres) of its 110,000 ha (270,000 acres) goal.

The dam's current problem is the annual loss of reservoir capacity due to the erosion of soil in upstream areas. By 2006, the reservoir volume was estimated to be 2,600,000,000 m³ (2,100,000 acre·ft)