Construction progress of 2.4 GW hydro project in Colombia

Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM), the project company for 2,4 GW Ituango hydropower project in Antioquia, Colombia, has announced that the project is still viable and published the project progress information.

The construction of the Ituango dam located about 170 km northeast of Medellin on the Cauca River began in September 2011 and it was expected to be completed in December 2018, but the heavy rain and landslides in the spring of 2018 blocked river diversion tunnel, threatening a breach of the dam. This has caused the state of the emergency, the construction works were stopped and 113,000 people were evacuated amid fears of flooding.

Since then EPM has achieved a number of technical advances in the development of the project. Among them - bringing the dam to its final design height and concluding the drainage of the machine house. The company is now working to finish the road by the end of October for the continuous mobility of the inhabitants of Ituango. The company has also completed the installation of the second gate of the auxiliary diversion gallery. Construction is also completed in the main access tunnel, to achieve entry to the engine house, which presented several landslides. This has allowed the use of heavy machinery to work more smoothly inside the cave.

To date, 80% of the machine house caverns, transformers, beacons and adjacent tunnels have been explored in detail. Damages of civil works have been found in 20% of these inspected areas. It is expected that by December 31, 100% of the caverns will be explored, damage found and, thus, their repair will begin.

The Ituango hydroelectric project has a Technical Monitoring Center that allows real-time evaluation of the dam's behavior. Currently, the indicators show that the works and the massif are stable. All leaks in the project are evaluated permanently and so far are within the ranges contemplated in the design for this type of works. The inspection and repair work has been continuous and has been carried out with respect to the safety and qualification requirements to access the different work fronts.

Ituango´s entry into commercial operation, which according to the current estimates will be at the end of 2021, will generate 17% of the country's energy, with clean, reliable, safe and low-cost technology.