Potrerillos Dam

Potrerillos Dam is located on the Mendoza River, in Argentina's Potrerillos Valley. The dam was built between 1999 and 2003 by a consortium consisting of Industrias Metalúrgicas Pescarmona (IMPSA) and Cartellone to provide flood control, hydroelectricity and irrigation water. The dam cost US$ 312 million to construct. Located about 30 km southwest of Mendoza, the concrete-faced rockfill dam is 116 m high and 395 m long, impounding the 12 km long Potrerillos Reservoir.

The dam and reservoir have lost significant storage capacity due to the high silt content of the Mendoza River. When the reservoir was first filled in 2003, the capacity was estimated at 627000 dam3, with a total surface area of 1500 ha. This has since decreased to 420000 dam3 with a surface area of 1300 ha. The reduction in capacity has threatened the flood control capability of the dam, with the concern that the emergency spillway may become inadequate to pass high flood flows as the reservoir loses its capability to retain them.

Power plants
Water from the reservoir is diverted into a series of two hydroelectric power plants, Power Station Cacheuta and Power Station Álvarez Condarco, with a combined capacity of 181 MW. From the dam, a 4274 m tunnel furnishes water to four Francis turbines at Cacheuta with a capacity of 120 MW. The water then flows through a second tunnel to power three Francis turbines at Álvarez Condarco with a 61 MW capacity. The entire hydroelectric complex generates upwards of 850 million kilowatt hours per year, or 20% of the electrical consumption in Mendoza Province.

Accidents
In December 2015, A helicopter which was being used for filming an MTV reality show The Challenge has crashed into the reservoir killing the pilot and a technician.