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The Ertan Dam () is an 
The Ertan Dam () is an arch dam
An arch dam is a concrete dam that is curved upstream in plan. The arch dam is designed so that the force of the water against it, known as hydrostatic pressure, presses against the arch, causing the arch to straighten slightly and strengtheni ...
on the Yalong River
The Yalong River ( zh, 雅砻江, Pinyin, p ''Yǎlóngjiāng'', Wade–Giles, w ''Ya-lung Chiang'', Help:IPA/Mandarin, IPA ), or Nyag Chu (Standard Tibetan, Tibetan: , Tibetan pinyin, z ''Nyag Qu''), is a major tributary ...
, a tributary of the Yangtze River
The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
in Sichuan Province
Sichuan is a Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capita ...
, in southwest China
Southwestern China () is a region in the People's Republic of China. It consists of five provincial administrative regions, namely Chongqing, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Xizang.
Geography
Southwestern China is a rugged and mountainous region, ...
.
The dam has six hydroelectric
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...
generators, each with a generating capacity of 550 MW. The total generating capacity of the facility is 3,300 MW, one of the largest hydroelectric stations in China. The annual production is 17 TWh TWH or twh could refer to:
* Tai Dón language, a language of Vietnam, Laos, and China
* Tai Wo Hau station, Hong Kong; MTR station code
* Tennessee Walking Horse, a breed of horse
* Toronto Western Hospital, a hospital in Toronto, Canada
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, and until December 5, 2006, it has produced over 100 TWh of electricity. Construction of the dam started in September 1991 and was completed on December 26, 1999. A total of of material was excavated during construction.
The Ertan Dam was designed by the China Hydropower Engineering Consulting Group Survey and Design Institute in Chengdu, and was constructed and is currently operated by Ertan Hydropower Development Company Limited, the owners of the dam. The company is invested by State Development and Investment Company (52% share) and Sichuan Chuantou Energy Limited (48% share).
Design
The Ertan Dam is a high and long double-curvature arch dam. The dam withholds a normal reservoir of with a drainage area of and normal surface area of . The dam has four different ways to discharge water downstream. First, the dam'sspillway
A spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of water downstream from a dam or levee, typically into the riverbed of the dammed river itself. In the United Kingdom, they may be known as overflow channels. Spillways ensure tha ...
s which contain seven floodgate
Floodgates, also called stop gates, 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 ...
s at the crest and two flood tunnels can discharge and respectively. The dam also contains 6 x middle outlets and four bottom outlets that can discharge and respectively. The dam's power station is located underground along with its transformer room which is in a separate cavern. Additionally, the power station is supported by an underground surge chamber In hydropower, a surge chamber is a large pressurized underground chamber creating a free surface in the waterway to improve the dynamic abilities of the power plant waterways. It is generally used for long waterways when a surge shaft can not be cr ...
as well.
Main Features
Source:See also
*List of conventional hydroelectric power stations
This article lists hydroelectricity, hydroelectric power stations that generate power using the Hydroelectricity#Generating methods, conventional dammed method. This list includes power stations that are larger than in maximum net capacity, and a ...
* List of power stations in China
The following page lists some power stations in mainland China, sorted by energy source and location.
Coal
Nuclear
Hydroelectric
Solar
Tide
Wind
By location
The following pages list the major power stations ...
References
{{Authority control Hydroelectric power stations in Sichuan Dams in China Dams completed in 1999 Dams on the Yalong River Arch dams 1999 establishments in China