Afobaka Dam

Dam in Afobaka, Brokopondo District

4°58′56.07″N 54°59′32.10″W / 4.9822417°N 54.9922500°W / 4.9822417; -54.9922500PurposePowerStatusOperationalConstruction began1961Opening date1964; 60 years ago (1964)Dam and spillwaysType of damEmbankment with gravity dam main sectionHeight54 m (177 ft)Length1,913 m (6,276 ft)ReservoirCreatesBrokopondo ReservoirTotal capacity20,000,000,000 m³ (16,000,000 acre⋅ft)Catchment area12,200 km² (4,700 sq mi)Surface area1,560 km² (600 sq mi)Brokopondo KrachtcentraleOperator(s)Suriname Aluminum Company LLCCommission date1965Turbines6 x 30 MW Kaplan-typeInstalled capacity180 MW

The Afobaka Dam is an embankment dam with a main gravity dam section on the Suriname River near Afobaka in Brokopondo District of Suriname. The primary purpose of the dam is to generate hydroelectric power and it supports a 180 MW power station. In 1958, Suriname Aluminum Company LLC (Suralco [nl]), a subsidiary of Alcoa, gained an agreement with the Suriname government to build the dam to power an aluminium smelter.^[1] Construction began in 1961 and it was completed in 1964. About 75% of power generated is used for processing aluminum, the rest is used in Paramaribo downstream. The power station was operational in 1965 but the very large reservoir, Brokopondo Reservoir, was not completely filled until 1971. Greenhouse gases emitted from the reservoir resulted in poor water quality for decades. Highly acidic water also damaged the power station's turbines.^[2]