Tumarín Dam

The Tumarín Dam is a 60 meter tall, concrete gravity dam under construction on the Río Grande de Matagalpa, just upstream of the town of Tumarín in the South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region, Nicaragua. It is located about 35 km (22 mi) east of San Pedro del Norte, where the Río Grande de Matagalpa meets the Tuma River.[1] Aiming at generating power, it will be the largest hydropower dam in Nicaragua and one of the largest ones in Central America when completed.[2]

Tumarín Dam
Location of Tumarín Dam in Nicaragua
Official name	Presa Tumarín
Country	Nicaragua
Location	Tumarín
Coordinates	13°0′30.79″N 84°24′25.24″W
Purpose	Power
Status	Stalled
Opening date	Unknown
Construction cost	US$1.1 billion
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Gravity, roller-compacted concrete
Impounds	Río Grande de Matagalpa
Height	45 m (148 ft)
Length	350 m (1,150 ft)
Reservoir
Total capacity	200,000,000 m3 (160,000 acre⋅ft)
Catchment area	15,300 km2 (5,900 sq mi)
Surface area	20 km2 (7.7 sq mi)
Maximum water depth	30 m (98 ft)
Turbines	3 x 84.22 Kaplan-type
Installed capacity	253 MW
Annual generation	1,184 GWh (est.)

The power station located at the base of the dam will house three 84.33 MW Kaplan turbine-generators for an installed capacity of 253 MW.[3] The dam will create a reservoir covering 40 square kilometers.[4]

The project is being developed by Centrales Hidroelectricas de Nicaragua (CHN).[5] Brazil's Eletrobras was to fund the US$1.1 billion under a 20 to 30 year build–operate–transfer (BOT) agreement. First announced in March 2010, preliminary construction (roads, bridges and foundation) was to begin in 2011, and operations on the plant were projected to start by February 2015, after a 4-year-long construction. However, there have been many delays. In 2016, the dam project was indefinitely suspended due to Eletrobras' economic and legal troubles, in connection with the Brazilian economic crisis.[6] The project is still stalled as of January 2020.