JÚCAR RIVER BASIN: OUR HYDROELECTRIC POWER STATIONS

More than one million households benefit from the electricity generated at Iberdrola's hydroelectric plants in Iberdrola España's hydroelectric power plants in the Júcar river basin

The Júcar River rises in the Montes Universales, at the foot of what is known as the San Felipe hill, at an altitude of 1,837 metres, in the province of Cuenca, and runs for 495 km to its mouth in Cullera (Valencia). The Júcar river basin has 1,332 hm3 of dammed water and covers a total area of 42,735.6 km2. Its main tributary, the Cabriel, joins it at Cofrentes (Valencia), after 220 km from its source in Albarracín (Teruel).

JÚCAR RESERVOIRS

The Júcar river basin has six reservoirs that function as regulators of the river flow, for water storage and as hydroelectric power generators.

Cortes II

The Cortes-La Muela reservoir was built between 1983 and 1988 in the Valencian municipality of Cortes de Pallás. This reservoir has a flooded surface area of 680 hectares and a total volume of 114 hm3. It also has a hydroelectric power station of the same name, located at the foot of the dam.

El Naranjero

The El Naranjero reservoir is located in the municipality of Dos Aguas and Cortes de Pallás, in the province of Valencia. The facility was built in 1989 on the bed of the Júcar River, on a surface area of 120 hectares and with a capacity of 29 hm3.

From an intake near the dam, located on the right bank of the reservoir, the water is redirected through an underground tunnel of approximately 13 kilometres to the load tank of the Millares II underground power station. There it is used to generate electricity, with an installed capacity of 71 MW.

HYDROELECTRIC POWER PLANTS IN THE JUCAR RIVER BASIN

Iberdrola España operates with nine power plants and three mini-hydroelectric power stations in the Júcar river basin. These facilities harness the flow of the river and its tributaries to produce electricity, taking advantage of its hydraulic potential. Thus, they play a crucial role in the supply of renewable electricity.

Alarcón

The Alarcón reservoir has a mini-hydroelectric power station, in operation since 2007. The facility takes advantage of a 52-metre-high head to produce electricity, with an installed capacity of 16.80 MW, supplyingenergy to 11,760 families.

Batanejo

In the municipality of Enguídanos (Cuenca), the Batanejo hydroelectric power station is located, built in 1926. It operates with a 71-metre-high head and a gross turbine power of 2.04 MW, which supplies electricity to 1,428 homes.

Cofrentes

The Cofrentes hydroelectric power station is located in the municipality of the same name, in Valencia, and was commissioned in 1951. The facility has a head that exceeds 140 metres in height and its installed capacity is 121.69 MW. In this way, the plant is capable of supplying electricity to 85,183 homes in the region.

Contreras II

The Contreras II hydroelectric power station was designed in the 1970s to turbine the flows of a reservoir with an official capacity of 880 cubic hectometres. Located in Villargordo del Cabriel, it has an installed capacity of 880 cubic hectometres, and installed capacity of 51.62 MW and a head of 102 metres.

Cortes II

Located in the town of Cortes de Pallás, in Valencia, the Cortes II hydroelectric power station came into operation in 1988. It has a capacity installed capacity of 290.50 MW and uses a 96-metre head to supply electricity to 203,350 homes.

El Bosque

The El Bosque mini-electric plant, in Casas de Ves (Albacete), has an installed capacity of 8.00 MW and a head of 23.69 metres. This facility was built in 1961 and, since then, has been supplying electricity to 5,642 homes. 

El Tranco del Lobo

Tranco del Lobo, in Casas de Ves (Albacete), is one of the first hydroelectric power stations in Spain, active since 1925. This mini-power station operates with a head of 13.67 metres and a capacity installed capacity of 3.84 MW, providing electricity to around 2,688 households.

Lucas

The Lucas hydroelectric power station, built in 1914, is located in the municipality of Enguídanos, in Cuenca. It has a head of 112 metres and an installed capacity of 39.60 MW, which supplies electricity to 27,720 homes.

Millares II

The hydroelectric power station of the same name has been located in the municipality of Millares, Valencia, since 2002. It has a 137-metre-high head and an installed capacity of 70.60 MW, which provides electricity to 49,420 households.

Muela I

La Muela I is an underground hydroelectric power station in a cavern, the construction of which required the excavation of 635,000 m3. Located in Cortes de Pallás, in the Valencia region, it has a capacity of 634.80 MW in turbination and 549 MW in pumping,  and a head of 518 metres in turbination and 513 metres in pumping.

Muela II

La Muela II, located in Cortes de Pallás (Valencia), is considered to be the largest pumped the largest pumped-storage hydroelectric plant in Europe. It has an underground cavern more than 115 metres long, which required the excavation of 270,000 m3 for its construction. The facility harnesses a 518-metre head and has a gross turbine capacity of 881.73 MW and 744 MW of pumping power.

La Muela II has a penstock with an intake in the upper reservoir, an underground plant to house the equipment and a suction area in the lower reservoir.

Picazo

The Picazo hydroelectric facility, located in the municipality of the same name in the province of Cuenca, came into operation in 1954. It has a 49-metre-high head and an installed capacity of 17.58 MW, which supplies electricity to 12,306 households.

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