Barra Grande Hydroelectric Power Plant

Barra Grande Dam
Location of Barra Grande Dam in Brazil
Official name	Barra Grande Hydroelectric Power Plant
Location	Celso Ramos, Santa Catarina/Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Coordinates	27°46′36″S 51°11′23″W / 27.77667°S 51.18972°W / -27.77667; -51.18972Coordinates: 27°46′36″S 51°11′23″W / 27.77667°S 51.18972°W / -27.77667; -51.18972
Construction began	2001
Opening date	2005
Construction cost	$1.5 billion USD
Owner(s)	Energética Barra Grande SA (BAESA)
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Embankment, concrete face rock-fill
Impounds	Pelotas River
Height	185 m (607 ft)
Length	665 m (2,182 ft)
Width (crest)	14 m (46 ft)
Width (base)	500 m (1,600 ft)
Spillway type	Service, controlled
Reservoir
Creates	Barra Grande Reservoir
Surface area	94 km2 (36 sq mi)
Power Station
Commission date	2005-2006
Turbines	3 x 236 MW (316,000 hp) Francis turbines
Installed capacity	708 MW (949,000 hp)
Website BAESA

The 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 second tallest dam in Brazil. It is owned and operated by Energética Barra Grande SA (BAESA) and produces a 30% equivalent of the demand in Santa Catarina.

Construction on the dam began on May 2001 by the consortium BAESA whose stakeholders include Alcoa 42.2%, Companhia Paulista de Força e Luz (CPFL) 25%, Companhia Brasileira de Alumínio (CBA) 15%, Camargo Corrêa Cimentos 9%, and DME Energética 8.8%. On 1 November 2005, the first generator went into operation, the second in February 2006 and the third in May of the same year. In September 2005 after construction was complete and the reservoir began to fill, the concrete face on the upstream side of the dam cracked, causing a leak of 1280 liter/s. In June 2007, soil was dumped in the area which reduced the leak to 800 l/s. The dam still remains safe.

The Barra Grande Dam is a 665 metres (2,182 ft) long and 185 m (607 ft) high concrete face rock-fill embankment dam. At its base, it is 500 metres (1,600 ft) wide and 14 metres (46 ft) at its crest. The dam impounds a reservoir with a surface area of 94 square kilometres (36 sq mi) which supplies water to three 236 MW Francis turbines in the power station.

Construction of the dam required clearing 40 square kilometres (15 sq mi) of araucaria, a Brazilian pine tree, of which only 1% to 7% of their original forest survives. Other species threatened by the reservoir were the endangered bromeliad Dyckia distachya and Paraná. The environmental controversy require BAESA to extend and acquire new licenses along with spending extra money on programs.