Spain focus your attention on one of your reservoirs. It’s about to burst at the seams and it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The news is almost as striking as that of Seville, where reservoirs have sufficient capacity to supply water for the next four years. The need to access sustainable energy has become a priority on the international agenda. The hydraulic power It has proven itself as a solution to this demand and as a very valuable source of renewable energy in the world.
Since ancient times, the use of water sources has been considered an optimal energy source. Moreover, in the fourth century before that Cristothe Persian Empire already used water wheels to irrigate fields and hydraulic mills to grind grains.
However, the concept of hydraulic power would reach its maximum splendor and development with the Industrial Revolution Great Britain when using it as an energy source for new developments.
At the end of the 19th century, James B. Francis managed one high efficiency hydraulic turbineleading to the turbine Franciscuscapable of converting the potential energy of water into rotational kinetic energy applied to a shaft. The kind hydroelectric power station according to the current that concerns us on this occasion is the hydroelectric power station from the reservoir.
Through one or more dams, reservoirs are formed that are used to retain significant amounts of water and in this way regulate the current circulating through the turbines that produce electricity. This allows energy to be generated when it is most needed or convenient.
Spain turns its attention to this reservoir: it offers a unique opportunity
Loose Ullibarri reservoirs in Alava j far awaythat supply water Bilbao j Gasteiz They remain high, at 83% and 59% of their capacity respectively, above the average of the last ten years. After the December rains, which forced the release of water, the drainage of water took place to Ullibar ended on the day of New Year’s Eve.
The lack of rain at the beginning of the year meant that these areas could not be drained, but at a high level. far away is lower because of the use made of it Iberdrola energy for production Barazar.
At the end of 2024, news broke again about the Ullibarri reservoirwhich again has water in the gutter Zadora after 5 days with the locks closed. According to the data of the Ebro Hydrographic ConfederationHe Ullibarri reservoir in Alava water again flowed through the dam at a flow of 5 meters per second.
The reservoir system management protocol of the Zadora notes that discharge will commence when the water level reaches a sufficient level, 545 meters above sea level, to allow the spillway to open.
After reaching the level, on Monday, December 23, at 8 a.m., water discharges began again, albeit with a more moderate amount, 5 cubic meters per second, the same amount that was discharged according to the first days of December. the statement. EFE.
In the five days leading up to the date, as of Wednesday morning, the reservoir had not been discharged. Because it is a discrete quantity, it is not expected that problems will arise in the The Zadorra Riverdownstream, which currently carries a flow of 8 cubic meters per second as it flows through Vitoria, which is relatively low.
This reservoir in Spain has the world in suspense: we could be faced with a unique opportunity
It then registered a total capacity similar to the current one: 84%, according to data from the Ebro Hydrographic Confederation. He Urrunaga double reservoir registered a lower number: 53% of its capacity, having discharged more as the water is used by Iberdrola to turbine and generate electricity. This water is discharged into the basin the ratIn the north the waters flow Cantabrian.
So, Spain look at this reservoirwhich is almost overcrowded and is a unique opportunity. A context that takes place while this Spanish region awaits the debut of a colossal hydroelectric power plant: 160 MW and electrified reservoirs.