Top 10 largest dams in the world

Here we detailed list out the top 10 largest dams in the world by structure volume/dam volume.

10) Nurek Dam

The Nurek Dam is an earth-fill embankment dam on the Vakhsh River in Tajikistan. Its primary purpose is a hydroelectric power generation and its power station has an installed capacity of 3,015 MW. Construction of the dam began in 1961 and the power station’s first generator was commissioned in 1972

09) San Luis Dam

San Luis Dam is a major earth-filled dam in Merced County, California, which forms San Luis Reservoir, the largest off-stream reservoir in the United States. The dam and reservoir are located in the Diablo Range to the east of Pacheco Pass and about 10 miles west of Los Banos

Location	Merced County, California
constr.  began	1963
Opening  date	1968
Owner(s)	U.S. Bureau of Reclamation  and California Department of Water Resources
Height (Foundation)	116 m (382 ft)
Length	18,600 ft (5,700 m)
Structure volume	59.6×106 cubic meter
Dam type	Embankment
Reservoir Creates	San Luis Reservoir
Total  reservoir capacity	2.518 km3 (2,041,000 acre⋅ft)
Surface reservoir  area	214 km2 (82.6 sq mi)
Turbines	8 x 53.0 MW Francis turbines
Installed capacity	424 MW

08) Oroville Dam

Oroville Dam is an earth-fill embankment dam on the Feather River east of the city of Oroville, California, in the Sierra Nevada foothills east of the Sacramento Valley. At 770 feet high, it is the tallest dam in the U.S. and serves mainly for water supply, hydroelectricity generation and flood control.

Location	Oroville, California
constr.  began	1961
Opening  date	May 4, 1968
Owner(s)	California Department of Water Resources
Height (Foundation)	235 m (770 ft)
Length	6,920 ft (2,109 m)
Structure volume	59.6×106 cubic meter
Dam type	Zoned Earthfill
Reservoir Creates	Lake Oroville
Total  reservoir capacity	4.363537 km3 (3,537,577 acre⋅ft)
Surface reservoir  area	15,805 acres (6,396 ha)
Turbines	3x conventional 3x pump-generators
Installed capacity	819 MW

07) Gardiner Dam

The Gardiner Dam on the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatchewan is the third-largest embankment dam in Canada and one of the largest embankment dams in the world

Location	Coteau No. 255, Saskatchewan, Canada Loreburn No. 254, Saskatchewan, Canada
constr.  began	1959
Opening  date	June 21, 1967
Owner(s)	Saskatchewan Watershed Authority
Height	64 m (210 ft)
Length	5,000 m (16,400 ft)
Structure volume	65.4×106 cubic meter
Dam type	Embankment
Reservoir Creates	Lake Diefenbaker
Total  reservoir capacity	9.4 km3  (7,620,700 acre⋅ft)
Catchment  area	126,000 km2  (49,000 sq mi)
Turbines	3x 62 MW at Coteau Creek Hydroelectric Station
Installed capacity	186 MW

06) Mangla Dam

The Mangla Dam is a multipurpose dam situated on the Jhelum River in the Mirpur District of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan. It is the sixth-largest dam in the world. The village of Mangla, which sits at the mouth of the dam, serves as its namesake

Location	Mangla, Azad Jammu and Kashmir
constr.  began	1961
Opening  date	1965
Owner(s)	Government of Pakistan
Height	147 m (482 ft)
Length	3,140 m (10,302 ft)
Structure volume	65.4×106 cubic meter
Dam type	Embankment
Reservoir Creates	Mangla Lake
Total  reservoir capacity	9.12 km3  (7,390,000 acre⋅ft)
Catchment  area	33,334 km2  (12,870 sq mi)
Turbines	10 x 100 MW
Installed capacity	1,150 MW (15% overload) 1,500 MW  (max. planned)

05) Oahe Dam

The Oahe Dam is a large earthen dam on the Missouri River, just north of Pierre, South Dakota, United States. The dam creates Lake Oahe, the fourth-largest man-made reservoir in the United States. The reservoir stretches 231 miles up the course of Missouri to Bismarck, North Dakota. This dam is the fifth place of largest dams in the world.

Location	Hughes/Stanley counties, South Dakota
constr.  began	1948; 73 years ago
Opening  date	1962; 59 years ago
Owner(s)	U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District
Height	75 m (245 feet)
Length	2,850 m (9,360 feet)
Structure volume	70.3×106 cubic meter
Dam type	The embankment, Rolled-earth fill & shale berms
Reservoir Creates	Lake Oahe
Total  reservoir capacity	23,137,000 acre-feet (28.539 km3)
Surface  area	374,000 acres (151,000 ha) max
Turbines	7x 112.29 MW
Installed capacity	786 MW

04) Houtribdijk

The Houtribdijk is a dam in the Netherlands, built between 1963 and 1975 as part of the Zuiderzee Works, which connects the cities of Lelystad and Enkhuizen. On the west side of the dike is the Markermeer and on the east is the IJsselmeer. The 27-kilometre-long dike was intended for the Markerwaard, but this polder is now unlikely to be constructed. Although called a dike (withholding water from the land area). This dam is the fourth place of largest dams in the world.

Location	N302 Enkhuizen — Lelystad
constr.  began	1963
Opening  date	1975
Owner(s)	Netherlands government
Height	13 m (42.6509 feet)
Length	30 km (30000m)
Structure volume	78×106 cubic meter
Dam type	A dam (separating water bodies)
Reservoir Creates	Houtribdijk
Total  reservoir capacity	1,621,000 acre-feet (2 km3)
Surface  area	–
Turbines	–
Installed capacity	0 MW

Almost done, now below the top 3 largest dams in the world are,

03) Atatürk Dam

The Atatürk Dam, originally the Karababa Dam, is a zoned rock-fill dam with a central core on the Euphrates River on the border of Adıyaman Province and Şanlıurfa Province in the Southeastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. This dam is the third place of largest dams in the world.

Location	Şanlıurfa–Adıyaman, Turkey
constr.  began	1983
Opening  date	1992
Owner(s)	State Hydraulic Works (DSİ)
Height	169 m (554 ft)
Length	1,819 m (5,968 ft)
Structure volume	84.5×106 cubic meter
Dam type	zoned rock-fill dam with a central core
Reservoir Creates	Lake Atatürk Dam
Total  reservoir capacity	48,700,000,000 m3  (39,500,000 acre⋅ft)
Surface  area	817 km2 (315 sq mi)
Turbines	8 x 300 MW Francis-type
Installed capacity	2,400 MW

02) Fort Peck Dam

The Fort Peck Dam is the highest of six major dams along the Missouri River, located in northeast Montana in the United States, near Glasgow, and adjacent to the community of Fort Peck. This dam is the second place of largest dams in the world.

Location	Fort Peck, Montana
constr.  began	1933; 88 years ago
Opening date	1940; 81 years ago
Owner(s)	U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District
Height	250 ft (76 m)
Length	21,026 ft (6,409 m)
Structure volume	96×106 cubic meter
Dam type	Hydraulic earth fill
Reservoir Creates	Fort Peck Lake
Total  reservoir capacity	18,463,000 acre⋅ft (22.774 km3)
Surface  area	241,000 acres (98,000 ha)
Turbines	5x vertical Francis turbines
Installed capacity	185 MW

01) Tarbela Dam

Tarbela Dam is the largest dam in the world by structure/dam volume, is an earth-filled dam along the Indus River in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Located in the Swabi mainly and in some areas of Haripur District of the province, The dam is about 30 km from the city of Swabi, 105 km northwest of Islamabad, and 125 km east of Peshawar. This dam is the first place of largest dams in the world.

Location	Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
constr.  began	1968
Opening  date	1976
Owner(s)	Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA)
Height	143.26 metres (470 ft) from river level
Length	2,743.2 metres (9,000 ft)
Structure volume	153×106 cubic meter
Dam type	earth-filled dam
Reservoir Creates	Tarbela Reservoir
Total  reservoir capacity	13.69 km3  (11,100,000 acre⋅ft)
Surface area	250 km2 (97 sq mi)
Turbines	10 × 175 MW 4 × 432 MW 3 × 470 MW
Installed capacity	4,888 MW 6,298 MW (max)

Here are the list top 10 Tallest dams in the world by structure height/dam height.

Source – The all above details are collected with the help of the official website of the respective dams and Wikipedia.

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