The Alqueva Dam, the largest dam and artificial lake in Western Europe near Moura, Alentejo province, Portugal
Wikipedia: The Alqueva Dam is an arch dam and the centrepiece of the Alqueva Multipurpose Project. It impounds the River Guadiana, on the border of Beja and Évora Districts in south of Portugal. The dam takes its name from the town of Alqueva to its right bank. It creates a large reservoir with an inter-annual regulation capacity from which water may be distributed throughout the region. The dam was completed in 2002 and its reservoir reached the full level, for the first time, in 2010. The (695,200 hp) power station was commissioned in two stages, stage I in 2004 and stage II in 2013. The Alqueva Dam is the largest dam and artificial lake (250 square kilometres (97 sq mi)) in Western Europe. During the 1950s, the Portuguese Prime Minister, António de Oliveira Salazar, ordered a study of the feasibility of the dam project. The potential benefits of the Alqueva dam were discussed for decades. An initial effort was undertaken after the Carnation Revolution of 1974, but it was abandoned in 1978. The Portuguese government eventually made a firm decision to build the dam in the 1990s, during the Cavaco Silva and António Guterres governments. Aldeia da Luz, a small village that lay in the projected flood zone of the dam, was completely rebuilt on a new site. The construction of the new dam was carried out by a joint venture of Bento Pedroso Construções, Cubiertas y MZOV, Dragados and Somague – Sociedade de Construções. On February 8, 2002, the 96-metre (315 ft) high floodgates of the Alqueva dam were closed. In January 2010 the lake was filled to the planned level, with a surface area of 250 km2. When filled to capacity, the shoreline of Alqueva Lake, also known as Grande Lago, is nearly 1200 kilometers and the maximum depth is about 100 meters. A well-developed commercial marina has grown-up to the southeast of the town of Amieira, which provides all types of boating services.
Size: 7360px × 4912px
Location: Alqueva Dam, Alentejo, Portugal
Photo credit: © Bert de Ruiter / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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