Hidroelectrica begins the first stage of the controlled emptying process of the Vidraru reservoir, as of August 1st, 2025, with an estimated completion date of February 28th, 2026, to ensure the technical conditions for carrying out the refurbishment works for Vidraru Hydropower Facility.

It is the first complete emptying in the history of the Vidraru dam since 1974. A major technical work, necessary for the evaluation and modernization of the dam and its equipment after almost 50 years of continuous operation.

“Controlled emptying is a first technical step towards the re-engineering of the Vidraru HPP. What we are starting now at Vidraru will produce positive effects for the next 40 years. It is practically a new life for our production capacities. We are working with modern technology, eliminating current restrictions and producing more energy, with a strategic balancing role in the entire system”, explained Hidroelectrica CEO, Kàroly Borbèly.

The operation is necessary to carry out technical interventions on the dam’s hydromechanical equipment. The aim is to make the entire hydropower facility safe and ensure its operation for a new life cycle. The controlled emptying of the lake will be done by turbines and then by evacuation through the dam’s aqueducts and will be carried out in several successive stages between August 1, 2025 and February 28, 2026. In the final phases of the process, the flows will be evacuated in a controlled manner downstream, into the Argeș River bed, with values ​​between 20 and 47 mc/s.

The contract, worth 188,382,000 euros excluding VAT, for the refurbishment of the Vidraru Hydropower Facility was signed in July 2024 and is part of the Company’s investment strategy.

The Vidraru Hydropower Plant, put into operation on December 9, 1966, uses the hydropower potential of Argeș on a 28 km long sector, between Cumpăna and Oiești, capitalizing on a total water fall of 324 meters. The reservoir has a total volume of 465 million cubic meters, of which 320 million cubic meters is the useful volume.

Hidroelectrica is the largest producer of green energy in Romania and provides essential technological services for the National Energy System. The company operates 188 plants with a hydropower capacity of 6.4 GW and – in addition, it owns a wind farm at Crucea, with an installed capacity of 108 MW.