Country Mali Purpose Power Height 2 m Construction began 2009 | Location Kayes Region Status Operational Opened 1927 Impound Senegal River | |
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Official name Félou Hydroelectric Plant Opening date 1927; 90 years ago (1927) Similar Senegal River, Gouina Falls, Manantali Dam | ||
The Félou Hydroelectric Plant, is a hydroelectric installation at the Félou Falls on the Sénégal River in Mali. It has three water turbines capable of generating 62.3 MW. The current power station replaced an older one built in the 1920s. Construction of the new power station began in October 2009 and was financed by the World Bank. It is the third Senegal River Basin Development Authority project on the river and was completed in 2014. The existing weir was refurbished with the previous 2 metres (6.6 ft) height maintained. In 1927, the previous hydroelectric power station was commissioned. It was refurbished in 1992 and had an installed capacity of 600 kW.
At maximum output the three 21 MW turbines pass a total of 500 cubic metres per second (18,000 cu ft/s) of water. Between August and November the water flowing in the river generally exceeds this value allowing the plant to operate at full capacity and the excess water to pass over the weir. During the dry season (December to July) the electricity generated is reduced to about a third of the maximum output as the flow of water is limited to the 150–200 cubic metres per second (5,300–7,100 cu ft/s) released from the Manantali Dam.
The total estimated cost is 242 million US dollars. The construction of the plant was completed in 2014.