Shweli I Dam

The Shweli I Dam is a gravity dam on the Shweli River about 23 km southwest of Namhkam in Shan State, Burma. The primary purpose of the dam is hydroelectric power generation and it supports a 600 MW power station. Water from the dam's reservoir is diverted through a 5.1 km long headrace tunnel to the power station downstream. The drop in elevation affords a hydraulic head of 299 m. Construction on the dam began in 2002 and the river was diverted on 10 December 2006. On 5 September 2008, the first generator was commissioned and the last of the six was commissioned in April 2009. The dam and the power station were constructed under the build–operate–transfer method and cost US$756.2 million. It is owned and operated by the Shweli River-I Power Station Co. The Shweli II and Shweli III Dams are planned downstream.