SITE UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Thessaurus Dam

Drama Prefecture – Greece
Services Offered: Geotechnical Consultant 1989-1993
Location: 25 km NW Nestos River, Drama
Client: THESSAURUS J.V. / Public Power Corporation of Greece

The Hydroelectric Power Plant of Thessaurus, on Nestos river, includes a high dam, with the relevant units and an underground electric power plant of 240 MW.

The Thesaurus dam is a rockfill one, 172 m high, with a crest length of 520 m, total embankment volume of 11 x 106 m3 and lake capacity of 705 x 106 m3.

The area of the dam constituted of gneiss and granite – gneiss with intercalations of mica schists and amphibolites, intersected by centripetal faults, or upthrow faults, which contribute at the qualitative sorting of the rock mass.

The geomorphological, hydraulic, geological and geotechnical ground conditions at the area of the dam, in conjunction with the required interventions on the slopes and the embankments, as well as with the quality demands of the construction, resulted in the creation of unusual conditions and problems requiring specific technicoeconomical solutions.

The consultancy to the Joint Venture (PROODEFTIKI S.A. – TEV S.A. – SARANTOPOULOS S.A.) covered subjects such as:

  • Explosions and ground excavations in rock.
  • Shaping and retaining works of rock slopes (over 100 m height).
  • Investigation, production, selection and quality control of the construction materials, for the core, the filters and the main body of the dam.
  • Selection of the sites and quality control of borrow pits materials, for the production of aggregates.
  • Excavation and retaining works for drain tunnels and grouting works of a total length over 4.0 km.
  • Installation of geotechnical instruments for the follow up of the dam behaviour and related works.