Magat Dam

Magat Dam

Magat Dam is a large rock-fill dam in the island of Luzon in the Philippines. It is a multi-purpose dam which is used primarily for irrigating about 85,000 hectares of agricultural lands, flood control, and power generation. The water stored in the reservoir is enough to supply about two months of normal energy requirements.

About Magat Dam in brief

Summary Magat DamMagat Dam is a large rock-fill dam in the island of Luzon in the Philippines. The dam is on the Magat River, a major tributary of Cagayan River. Construction of the dam started in 1975 and was completed in 1982. It is a multi-purpose dam which is used primarily for irrigating about 85,000 hectares of agricultural lands, flood control, and power generation. The water stored in the reservoir is enough to supply about two months of normal energy requirements. The project was jointly financed by the Philippine Government and the World Bank which extended a US$150M loan to finance the foreign exchange requirement.

The hydroelectric power plant is a four-unit powerhouse with an installed capacity of 360 megawatts. It will allow it to accommodate more than two units that will generate up to 540 megawatts, enough to power some 350,000 homes. The total project cost is US$3. 4B. The non-power components such as the dam, reservoir, and intake gates are owned, operated, and managed by the National Irrigation Administration. The power plant’s ownership and operation was turned over to a joint venture of a local company, Aboitiz Power Corporation, and a Norwegian firm SN Power in April 2007.