One of the most important initiatives in the energy sector in Portuguese history

The project

This flagship project of the Iberdrola group consists of building 3 new hydro-plants on the Tâmega River in the North of Portugal.

The infrastructure represents an investment of 1,5 billion Euro and should be completed in 2023.

The 3 new dams and hydroelectric plants, situated at Gouvâes, Daivoes and Alto Tâmega, will save 1.2 million tonnes of C02 emissions annually and will drastically diminish the imports of oil.

Progress

It is expected that the first plant (Gouvâes) will start operating in 2021. The construction is on schedule, and the assembly of the 4 generator sets is underway. These will produce a total of 880 MW and will be housed in an underground cavern.

Gouvâes will be a reversible plant, making it possible to store water from the Daivoes reservoir, taking advantage of the 650 metres of height difference. Energy can be used to pump water up when there is an excess of production and be recuperated when required. Its storage capacity will allow for continuous electricity supply for the Oporto metropolitan area for 24 hours.