Inguri Dam

Inguri Dam
Location of Inguri Dam in Georgia
Country	Georgia
Location	Jvari
Coordinates	42°45′36″N 42°01′48″E / 42.76000°N 42.03000°E / 42.76000; 42.03000Coordinates: 42°45′36″N 42°01′48″E / 42.76000°N 42.03000°E / 42.76000; 42.03000
Status	Operational
Construction began	1961
Opening date	1987
Owner(s)	Enguri Ltd
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Arch dam
Impounds	Inguri River
Height	271.5 m (891 ft)
Power station
Operator(s)	Chernomorenergo
Turbines	5 × 264 MW
Installed capacity	1,320 MW
Annual generation	3.8 TWh

The Inguri Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Inguri River in Georgia. Currently it is the world's second highest concrete arch dam with a height of 271.5 metres (891 ft).^[1][2][3] It is located north of the town Jvari. It is part of the Inguri hydroelectric power station (HES) which is partially located in Abkhazia, the separatist region of Georgia.

History

Soviet President Nikita Khrushchev initially proposed a major dam and hydroelectric power scheme on the Bzyb River as his favourite resort was located near the mouth of the river at Pitsunda. However, his experts informed him that a dam built on the Bzyb River would have had catastrophic effects in causing beach erosion at Pitsunda, so in the end the dam was built on the Inguri River instead, where the impact upon the coastline was assessed to be considerably less pronounced.^[4]

Construction of the Inguri dam began in 1961. The dam became temporarily operational in 1978, and was completed in 1987. In 1994, the dam was inspected by engineers of Hydro-Québec, who found that the dam was "in a rare state of dilapidation".^[5] In 1999, the European Commission granted €9.4 million to Georgia for urgent repairs at the EInguri HES, including replacing the stoplog at the arch dam on the Georgian side and, refurbishing one of the five generators of the power station at the Abkhaz side.^[6] In total, €116 million loans were granted by the EBRD, the European Union, the Japanese Government, KfW and Government of Georgia.^[1] In 2011 The European Investment Bank (EIB) loaned €20 million in order to complete the rehabilitation of the Enguri hydropower plant and to ensure safe water evacuation towards the Black Sea at the Vardnili hydropower cascade.^[7]

Technical features

The Inguri hydroelectric power station (HES) is a cascade of hydroelectric facilities including, in addition to the dam - diversion installation of the Inguri HES proper, the near-dam installation of the Perepad HES-1 and three similar channel installations of the Perepad HESs-2, -3, and -4 located on the tailrace emptying into the Black Sea.^[8] While the arch dam is located on the Georgian controlled territory in Upper Svanetia, the power station is located in the Gali District of region Abkhazia of Georgia.^[6] Inguri HES has 20 turbines with a nominal capacity of 66 MW each,^[9] resulting in a total capacity of 1,320 MW. Its average annual capacity is 3.8 TW/h, which is approximately 46% of the total electricity supply in Georgia as of 2007.^[10]

THe facility's arched dam, located at the town of Jvari, was inscribed in the list of cultural heritage of Georgia in 2015.^[11]

See also

• List of power stations in Georgia

References

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