Analysis of water resources potential and useful life of the Shiroro hydro reservoir was carried out with the view to assessing its current state, operations and management. Hydro-meteorological data was obtained from the hydrological Department of the Shiroro Hydropower project for the period of 16 years (1990 to 2006). Analysis of the data reveals that the month of April has the lowest inflow (1,281.7 million m3). Analysis of the inflow and draft shows that the storage in the reservoir is inadequate to power all the four installed turbines, as a consequence of which only three are being used. The seepage through the dam was estimated to be 725.19 m3/day and the useful life of the reservoir was estimated to be 137.7 years (1984 to 2122). Also, calculation reveals that to be able to meet the intended uses of the dam (600 MW output), a balance return flow through a pumped storage operation of 204.5 m3/s would be required. Finally, suggestions were given as to the other possible ways to reduce siltation and enhance reservoir performance.
Key words: Shiroro dam reservoir, water resources potential, useful life, hydropower, pumped storage.
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