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Itaipú spillway gates to remain open through weekend amid rising reservoir levels
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Energy & Infrastructure

Itaipú spillway gates to remain open through weekend amid rising reservoir levels

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • The Itaipú Hydroelectric Power Plant is keeping its spillway gates open through Monday and potentially the weekend.
  • This is a programmed operation due to rising reservoir levels caused by heavy rains, exacerbated by the El Niño phenomenon.
  • The measure aims to control the water level and compensate for inflows exceeding generation capacity, especially during periods of lower energy demand.

The spillway gates at the Itaipú Hydroelectric Power Plant will remain open throughout Monday and possibly until the weekend, according to the plant's System Operation Division. This programmed operation began Sunday morning as the reservoir level reached 220.30 meters, nearing its maximum operational capacity of 220.40 meters.

The spillway was opened because we are reaching the maximum value and to control that and gradually compensate, also based on the amount of water arriving during this week.

— Ing. Rodrigo García RamírezExplaining the reason for opening the spillway gates.

The elevated water level is a direct consequence of recent rainfall in the upstream areas feeding the Itaipú dam. Ing. Rodrigo García Ramírez, System Operation Manager at Itaipú, explained that opening the gates on a Sunday minimizes impact on energy demand from both Paraguayan and Brazilian systems. He noted that lower winter energy loads and some restrictions in the Brazilian system contribute to reduced generation, causing the reservoir level to rise.

"The spillway was opened because we are reaching the maximum value and to control that and gradually compensate, also based on the amount of water arriving during this week," Ramírez stated. With high inflows expected throughout the week due to the rainy season and the El Niño phenomenon, the plant's technical directorate must implement operational procedures to discharge excess water that cannot pass through the turbines for power generation.

There is a lower load since we are in winter and on the weekend we had less load. We also have some restrictions, mainly in the Brazilian system, which reduces our generation and, naturally, the reservoir increases.

— Ing. Rodrigo García RamírezDescribing factors contributing to the rising reservoir level.

The current forecast suggests the spillway will remain open for the entire week to maintain the reservoir level near its normal maximum. This allows for real-time adjustments based on incoming water flow. Ramírez emphasized that the operational level is typically maintained at 220.40 meters, with a 10-centimeter safety buffer below the absolute maximum of 220.50 meters, enabling modulation from the control room.

We are talking about a reservoir of...

— Ing. Rodrigo García RamírezBeginning to describe the reservoir's capacity.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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