page_title: El Quimbo Dam
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: El Quimbo Dam / Geography
caption_attribution_description: English: This is a view of Honda, Tolima with the Rio Magdelena in the foreground, taken in 1996. The image was scanned from a 35mm negative and then edited with photoshop 7.0.
context_page_description: The El Quimbo Dam is a concrete faced rock-fill dam and hydroelectric power facility in the Huila Department of southwestern-central Colombia, approximately 69 kilometres south of the city of Neiva, on the Magdalena River. It is located about 1,300 metres upstream from the confluence of the Páez River with the Magdalena River. Its works were officially opened on February 25, 2011 in the presence of President Juan Manuel Santos. It is one of the largest infrastructure projects in the country. The project was completed 4 years later, in the end of 2015.
  The powerhouse near the base of the dam has an installed capacity of 400 MW, which is expected to achieve an average energy generation of 2,216 gigawatt-hours /year, with a dam that will have a live storage of 1,824 million cubic metres and an inundated area 8,250 hectares. The objective is to enhance the energy security and stability of the Colombian electricity supply, meeting about 8% of energy demand in Colombia with energy prospects of 1,650 gigawatt-hours to 2034.
context_section_description: The dam is located in Colombia, in the Magdalena River basin formed by the central and eastern mountain ranges, to the south of department of Huila. The administrative jurisdiction of the project covers the municipalities of Garzón, Gigante, El Agrado, Paicol, Tesalia and Altamira. However, the dam and the project's powerhouse are located within the municipality of Gigante. The existing Betania Dam is about 35 kilometres (22 mi) downstream. Bogotá, the capital of Colombia is 379 kilometres (235 mi) to the north. It is 60 kilometres (37 mi) to the south of Neiva, 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) from Gigante and 40 kilometres (25 mi) from Garzón.
  The project area lies in the narrow gorge section of the Magdalena River. The rock formation is of friable sandstones of tertiary age. It is 1.3 kilometres (0.81 mi) upstream from the confluence of the Magdalena and Páez Rivers. The contractor will provide about 48,000 million pesos to build the perimeter road that will boost tourism and commercial development southwest of the Huila Department.
caption: Magdalena River with Honda city on its bank
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