Overview
Itaipu Dam of Brazil-Paraguay is the largest dam by installed capacity in South America, built with a capacty of 14,000 MW. At second and third, are Belo Monte Dam with a capacity of 11,233 MW and Guri Dam at 10,235 MW.The installed capacities of major dams in South America range from 360 MW to 14,000 MW, with the average dam installed with a capacity of 4,947.7 MW.
Interactive Chart
Top 13 ranks, by installed capacity in descending order ( rank and segment full dataset - 113 items )
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Here are the largest dams by installed capacity in South America.
Itaipu Dam is located in Foz do Iguaçu and Hernandarias, Brazil-Paraguay (South America). The buttress dam was completed in 1984 (38 years old).
Itaipu Dam is the 2nd largest hydroelectric dam in the world by installed capacity. The structural height of Itaipu Dam is 196 meters while its structural volume of 12.30 million m3. The buttress dam can hold up to 29 billion m3 of water and has an installed capacity of 14,000MW.
Located in Pará, Brazil, Belo Monte Dam is a gravity dam. It was built in 2016 (6 years since completion).
Belo Monte Dam is the 2nd largest hydroelectric gravity dam in the world by installed capacity. The gravity dam has an installed capacity of 11,233MW. Belo Monte Dam stands 90 meters tall and can impound up to 1.89 billion m3 of water. Its structural volume is 25.36 million m3.
Guri Dam, also known as Simón BolÃvar Hydroelectric Plant, is a 44-year-old gravity dam (completed in 1978). It is located in Necuima Canyon, BolÃvar, Venezuela (South America).
The gravity dam stands at a height of 162 meters and impounds up to 135 billion m3 of water. Guri Dam has a structural volume of 29.80 million m3 and an installed capacity of 10,235MW.
Tucuruà Dam is a 38-year-old gravity dam (completed in 1984). It is located in TucuruÃ, Pará, Brazil (South America).
Tucuruà Dam is the 3rd largest gravity dam in the world by reservoir volume. The installed capacity of Tucuruà Dam is 8,370MW. The gravity dam stands 78 meters tall and can impound up to 45 billion m3 of water.
Compare Tucuruà Dam with Chief Joseph Dam from United States.
Compare Tucuruà Dam with Ust-Ilimsk Hydroelectric Power Station from Russia.
Jirau Dam is a 6-year-old embankment dam (completed in 2016). It is located in Rondônia, Brazil (South America).
Jirau Dam is the 3rd largest hydroelectric dam in Brazil by installed capacity. The installed capacity of Jirau Dam is 3,750MW. The embankment dam stands 63 meters tall and its structural volume is 2 million m3.
Located in Ilha Solteira, São Paulo, Brazil, Ilha Solteira Dam is an embankment dam. It was built in 1973 (49 years since completion).
Ilha Solteira Dam impounds the 2nd largest reservoir volume in Brazil. The embankment dam has an installed capacity of 3,444MW. Ilha Solteira Dam stands 76 meters tall and can impound up to 21.20 billion m3 of water.
Macagua Dam, also known as Antonio José de Sucre, is located in Ciudad Guayana in BolÃvar State, Venezuela (South America). The embankment dam was completed in 1961 (61 years old).
The embankment dam stands at a height of 69 meters and impounds up to 0.36 billion m3 of water. Macagua Dam has an installed capacity of 3,168MW.
Dams Lists
Largest Dams by Installed Capacity (MW): world | Asia | Europe | North America | South America | USA | Canada | Australia | UK
Tallest Dams: world | Asia | Europe | North America | South America | USA | Canada | Australia | UK
Dams with Largest Structural Volume: world | Asia | Europe | North America | South America | USA | Canada | Australia | UK
Dams with Largest Reservoir Volume: world | Asia | Europe | North America | South America | USA | Canada | Australia | UK
Largest/tallest Dams by Type: Arch Dams | Embankment Dams | Gravity Dams | Arch-Gravity Dams | Buttress Dams