Hidroelectrica has completed the filling procedure at normal retention level of 1072.5 meters of Gura Apelor lake, the accumulation belonging to Raul Mare Retezat project.
The filling of the lake, which covers about 360 hectares and accumulates about 220 million cubic meters of water, was possible only this year, amid favorable hydrology.
Gura Apelor dam is the second largest clay core rock dam in Europe, the construction encompassing 7 million cubic meters of stone from quarries in the area, as well as one million cubic meters of land. The building, 160 meters high, is placed on a wide base of 560 meters and extends 460 meters long at the canopy.
HPP Raul Mare Retezat complex includes the Gura Apelor dam and the Retezat and Clopotiva hydropower plants, with an installed capacity of 349 MW and an average annual electricity generation of 629.5 GWh.
The filling of the accumulation is also the precondition for the start of the project for the reconstruction of the HPP complex. Earlier this year, Hidroelectrica has launched a 77 million euros worth tender for the reconstruction of the complex. The reconstruction includes: procurement, assembly and commissioning of hydraulic turbine; procurement, assembly and commissioning of generator; modernization, installation and commissioning of hydromechanical equipment; modernization and commissioning of transformer stations; installation and commissioning of automation and SCADA systems.
