Vorotan Cascade
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Vorotan Cascade
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 Tatev
Shamb
Spandaryan
Locations of the Vorotan Cascade power plants in Armenia
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| Country | Armenia |
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| Location | Syunik Province |
| Purpose |
Hydroelectricity Irrigation |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | 1961 |
| Owner(s) | ContourGlobal |
| Operator(s) | ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade CJSC |
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Website www |
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Spandaryan HPP
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.JPG) |
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| Location | Shaghat |
| Coordinates | 39°34′25″N 45°54′47″E / 39.57361°N 45.91306°E |
| Status | Operational |
| Opening date | 1989 |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Embankment type, mixed rockfill and earthfill |
| Height (foundation) | 89 metres (292 ft) |
| Height (thalweg) | 83 metres (272 ft) |
| Length | 315 metres (1,033 ft) |
| Width (crest) | 10 metres (33 ft) |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Spandaryan Reservoir |
| Total capacity | 257,000,000 cubic metres (208,000 acre·ft) |
| Active capacity | 218,000,000 cubic metres (177,000 acre·ft) |
| Surface area | 10.8 km2 (4.2 sq mi) |
| Max. length | 7 km (4.3 mi) |
| Max. width | 3 km (1.9 mi) |
| Max. water depth | 73 m (240 ft) |
| Normal elevation | 2,060 m (6,760 ft) |
| Power station | |
| Turbines | 2 X 38 MW |
| Installed capacity | 76 MW |
| Annual generation | 210 GWh |
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Shamb HPP
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| Location | Shamb |
| Coordinates | 39°26′13″N 46°09′00″E / 39.43694°N 46.15000°E |
| Status | Operational |
| Opening date | 1978 |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Concrete spillway dam (Angeghakot Dam) Embankment dam, sandy gravel and soil (Tolors Dam) |
| Height (thalweg) | 23.4 m (77 ft) (Angeghakot Dam) 69 m (226 ft) (Tolors Dam) |
| Length | 188 m (617 ft) (Tolors Dam) |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Angeghakot Reservoir Tolors Reservoir |
| Total capacity | 3,400,000 cubic metres (2,800 acre·ft) (Angeghakot Reservoir) 96,000,000 m3 (78,000 acre·ft) (Tolors Reservoir) |
| Active capacity | 80,000,000 m3 (65,000 acre·ft) (Tolors Reservoir) |
| Normal elevation | 1,651.1 m (5,417 ft) |
| Power station | |
| Turbines | 2 X 85.5 MW |
| Installed capacity | 171 MW |
| Annual generation | 320 GWh |
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Tatev HPP
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| Location | Tatev |
| Coordinates | 39°25′39″N 46°22′15″E / 39.42750°N 46.37083°E |
| Status | Operational |
| Opening date | 1970 |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Embankment type, sandy gravel |
| Height (thalweg) | 41 metres (135 ft) |
| Length | 107 metres (351 ft) |
| Spillway capacity | 312 cubic metres per second (11,000 cu ft/s) |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Tatev Reservoir |
| Total capacity | 13,600,000 cubic metres (11,000 acre·ft) |
| Active capacity | 1,800,000 cubic metres (1,500 acre·ft) |
| Normal elevation | 1,335.4 m (4,381 ft) |
| Power station | |
| Hydraulic head | 568.8 m (1,866 ft) |
| Turbines | 3 x 52.4 MW Pelton turbines |
| Installed capacity | 157.2 MW |
| Annual generation | 670 GWh |
The Vorotan Cascade, or the ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade, is a cascade on the Vorotan River in Syunik Province, Armenia. It was built to produce hydroelectric power and provide irrigation water. The Vorotan Cascade consists of three hydroelectric power plants and five reservoirs with a combined installed capacity of 404.2 MW. It is one of the main power generation complexes in Armenia.
The planning process of the Cascade began just after the Conference of the State Planning Commission held in 1951. In 1954, it was highlighted that with proper infrastructure and careful planning, Armenia's energetic hydro resources might allow it to become an electricity importer to neighbouring energy deficit areas like Azerbaijan and Iran. It was anticipated that the activation of the Cascade would cut the import of oil products to the country by half. The design work of the Complex began in 1954 and it was constructed between 1961 and 1989. The Tatev hydroelectric power plant (HPP) was completed in December 1970, the Shamb HPP in 1978, and the Spandaryan HPP] in 1989. Despite the plans, Azerbaijan was against the import of electricity from Armenia, thus hindering the scheduled renovation and capacity expansion to take place at the end of 1970's. The Vorotan Cascade continued to supply electricity mainly to non-ferrous metallurgy industry in nearby Agarak.
After Armenia gained independence, the Voratan Cascade belonged to the state-owned energy company Armenergo. In 1997, the Vorotan cascade was separated from Armenergo into a separate state owned company.
Modernization of the cascade started in 2003 by help of the €2.7 million grant of the European Union which was used for rehabilitation of the Tatev HPP of the Vorotan Cascade, and the Argel HPP. Rehabilitation works were conducted by Voith Siemens Hydro Power Generation. Next rehabilitation project was launched in 2010, financed by the €51 million credit from the German development bank KfW. Rehabilitation works started in 2012.
In 2015, ContourGlobal purchased the Vorotan Cascade operating company for US$180 million. ContourGlobal has started a six-year refurbishment program to modernize the plants and improve their operational performance, as well as safety, reliability, and efficiency, with the total investment of $70 million. This is the biggest investment US investment in Armenia. The International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, did 20% of the total investment.
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