Murwani Dam is a rock-fill embankment dam crossing wadi Murwani in Makkah Region, Saudi Arabia. It is located about 100 km northeast of Jeddah.

Murwani Dam
Murwani Dam is located in Saudi Arabia
Murwani Dam
Location of Murwani Dam in Saudi Arabia
LocationMakkah Region, Saudi Arabia
Coordinates22°10′46″N 39°34′07″E / 22.179477°N 39.568709°E / 22.179477; 39.568709
PurposeFlood control
StatusOperational
Construction began2004
Opening date2010
Dam and spillways
Type of damRock-fill embankment dam
ImpoundsWadi Murwani
Height (foundation)102 m (335 ft)
Length1,012 m (3,320 ft)
Elevation at crest251 m (823 ft)
Dam volume6,000,000 m3 (210,000,000 cu ft)
Spillway typeOver the dam
Reservoir
Total capacity150,000,000 m3 (120,000 acre⋅ft)

The 263 mio. SR contract to build the dam was awarded to Yuksel Insaat Saudia Co Ltd., a subsidiary of the Turkish company Yüksel Holding AŞ.[1] Work on the dam began in 2004. The dam was completed in April 2010.[2]

Main purpose of the dam is flood control,[2] because of flash floods, which occur occasionally in the region (see also 2009 Jeddah floods).

Murwani Dam is a 102 (91[2] or 101[1]) m tall (height above foundation) and 1,012 m long rock-fill embankment dam with a crest altitude of 251 m. The volume of the dam is 6,000,000 m³. The main dam on the right side has a length of 575 m (height 102 m), the saddle dam on the left of 437 m (height 30 m).[3] The dam features a spillway, which is located between the two dams. Impermeability was achieved by using an asphalt-core,[2] for which 80,000 tons of asphalt were used.[3]

Reservoir

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At full reservoir level the reservoir of the dam has a total capacity of 150 mio. m³. The estimated annual contribution into the reservoir is 31 mio. m³; about half of this water will be used at a downstream drinking water treatment plant for potable use. The remaining water will be stored in an aquifer or will be lost to free-surface evaporation.[4]

See also

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  • "Khulais Dam, Marwani Valley". Wikimapia. Retrieved 2016-01-13.

References

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  1. ^ a b M. Ghazanfar Ali Khan (2004-08-26). "Dam Contract Awarded to Turkish Firm". Arab News. Retrieved 2016-01-13.
  2. ^ a b c d "Murwani Dam". www.yuksel.net. Retrieved 2016-01-13.
  3. ^ a b "Murwani asphalt core dams - Saudi Arabia". Veidekke ASA. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-01-13.
  4. ^ O Lopez; G Stenchikov; T M Missimer. "Water management during climate change using aquifer storage and recovery of stormwater in a dunefield in western Saudi Arabia" (PDF). iopscience.iop.org. p. 7. Retrieved 2015-12-12.