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32-601: The planning process of the Cascade began just after the Conference of the State Planning Commission held in 1951. In 1954, it was highlighted that with proper infrastructure and careful planning, Armenia's energetic hydro resources might allow it to become an electricity exporter to neighbouring energy deficit areas like Azerbaijan and Iran. It was anticipated that the activation of the Cascade would cut

64-492: A cold desert climate (BWk) according to the Köppen climate classification system. The vicinity of the village is designated as a Prime Butterfly Area, having number of rare and endangered species of butterflies, such as Gegenes nostrodamus , Zegris eupheme , Pieris krueperi , Chazara briseis , Cupido argiades , Pseudophilotes vicrama , and others. It is an important centre for non-ferrous metallurgy . In 1853,

96-483: A 10.5-kilometre (6.5 mi) free-flow tunnel which has throughput capacity of 23 cubic metres per second (810 cu ft/s). Water runs from the Tolors Reservoir to the plant through a 6.9-kilometre (4.3 mi) diversion pressure tunnel which turns into a 1,260-metre (4,130 ft) single-lane penstock. The Spandaryan HPP is located near Shaghat at the altitude of 1,694 metres (5,558 ft). It

128-537: A breeding colony of lesser kestrels , the only known in Armenia. The reservoir's length is 7 kilometres (4.3 mi), its width varies from 2.5 to 3 kilometres (1.6 to 1.9 mi), and its depth is 73 metres (240 ft). The surface area of the reservoir is 10.8 square kilometres (4.2 sq mi). It has 218,000,000 cubic metres (177,000 acre⋅ft) active and 257,000,000 cubic metres (208,000 acre⋅ft) total capacities. The normal elevation of water level

160-474: A copper-molybdenum deposit was discovered, and in 1958 a copper-molybdenum plant was opened in the village, which includes a quarry and a processing plant. The Agarak copper deposit and smeltery have been operating since 1963. The copper-molybdenum industry in Agarak has been recovered since 2001. Currently, the copper-molybdenum plant secures around 1200 jobs for the population of Agarak, which makes around 25% of

192-547: A pressure tunnel, a spillway culvert, and the Vorotan–Arpa tunnel for releasing water into Lake Sevan . The structures have 30.5 cubic metres per second (1,080 cu ft/s), 80 cubic metres per second (2,800 cu ft/s) and 15 cubic metres per second (530 cu ft/s) water outlays respectively. The last, the fourth structure is a surface spillway with a 160 cubic metres per second (5,700 cu ft/s) installed capacity and inclining drop. The pressure tunnel

224-523: A result of the 2016 administrative reforms, Agarak was downgraded from town to village, thus becoming a rural settlement within the Meghri Municipality . The village currently has two kindergartens, one secondary school, one art school, a cultural palace, two libraries and a football stadium. Agarak is located in semi-desert zone and is surrounded by rocky mountains with high cliffs and deep canyons with an average altitude of 660m. It has

256-463: A system of three power plants which are Spandaryan, Shamb and Tatev, and five reservoirs which are Spandaryan, Angeghakot, Tolors, Tatev and a daily regulation reservoir. The Spandaryan Reservoir in the vicinity of Tsghuk and Gorhayq villages, is the starting point of the complex. From there water flows through a pressurized tunnel to the Spandaryan HPP. From the Spandaryan HPP water flows to

288-454: A total capacity of 96,000,000 cubic metres (78,000 acre⋅ft) and active capacity of 80,000,000 cubic metres (65,000 acre⋅ft). The normal elevation of water level is 1,651.1 metres (5,417 ft) while 1,625.5 metres (5,333 ft) is the minimum. The Tatev Reservoir has total capacity of 13,600,000 cubic metres (11,000 acre⋅ft) and active capacity of 1,800,000 cubic metres (1,500 acre⋅ft). The normal elevation of water level

320-490: Is 1,335.4 metres (4,381 ft) while 1,333.8 metres (4,376 ft) is the minimum. Download coordinates as: Agarak, Syunik Agarak ( Armenian : Ագարակ ) is a village in the Meghri Municipality of the Syunik Province in southern Armenia , founded in 1949. As of 2011, the population of Agarak was 4,429. The village is located on the left bank of river Araks River , 9 km southwest of Meghri on

352-404: Is 2,060 metres (6,760 ft) while 2,030 metres (6,660 ft) is the absolute minimum. The Angeghakot Reservoir has 3,400,000 cubic metres (2,800 acre⋅ft) of total capacity. The reservoir has throughput capacity of 500,000 cubic metres per second (18,000,000 cu ft/s) and the spillway has capacity of 198 cubic metres per second (7,000 cu ft/s). The Tolors Reservoir has

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384-534: Is 8.2 kilometres (5.1 mi) long and it ends with a surge tank with capacity of 1,900 cubic metres (67,000 cu ft). The surge tank is connected to plant by 2,168-metre (7,113 ft) penstock. Spandaryan Reservoir is located southeast of Gorayk, in Spandaryan in the Vorotan River basin. It is connected to Arpa River and Arpa River basin by a 9-mile (14 km) long tunnel. It reportedly has

416-455: Is located near the Vorotan village on the left bank of the Vorotan River at the altitude of 730 metres (2,400 ft). It is one of Armenia's largest hydroelectric power plants, with installed capacity of 157.2 megawatts (210,800 hp) and annual generation of 670 GWh. Power is generated by three Pelton turbines of 52.4 megawatts (70,300 hp) each. The plant is unique has it is

448-572: Is one of the largest hydroelectric power plant having an installed capacity of 171 megawatts (229,000 hp) and annual generation of 320 GWh. Shamb HPP includes the Angeghakot and Tolors dams which create the Angeghakot and Tolors reservoirs. The Angeghakot Dam is a 23.4-metre (77 ft) high concrete spillway dam. The Tolors Dam is a 69-metre (226 ft) high and 188-metre (617 ft) long embankment type dam of sandy gravel and soil. The Angeghakot and Tolors reservoirs are connected by

480-553: Is the upper hydroelectric power plant on the cascade commissioned in 1989. The plant has an installed capacity of 76 MW and a projected annual electricity generation of 210 GWh. The Spandaryan Dam creates the cascade's upper reservoir, the Spandaryan Reservoir. The 83-metre (272 ft) high and 315-metre (1,033 ft) long Spandaryan dam is an embankment type, mixed rockfill and earthfill with clayey soiled bottom. Its water intake infrastructures includes

512-571: Is used also for the grid stabilization. The Tatev HPP has installed capacity of 157.2 MW, the Shamb HPP has installed capacity of 171 MW, and the Spandaryan HPP has installed capacity of 76 MW. Total installed capacity of Vorotan Cascade is 404.2 MW and it generates 1.16 GWh of electricity annually. The water stores of the Vorotan Complex are also used for irrigation in nearby village and town areas. The Tatev HPP

544-653: The Armenia–Iran border . The border crossing at Agarak is Armenia's sole border crossing with Iran , with the Iranian village of Nurduz being located at the other side of the border. The village had a railway station on the demolished and non-functioning branch of the Yerevan - Nakhchivan - Horadiz railway. Modern-day Agarak is located in the Arevik canton of the historic province of Syunik of Greater Armenia . The area

576-602: The Iran-Armenia gas pipeline started in Agarak on 30 November 2004. The pipeline started operations on 20 December 2006. Tourism from Iran is a growing industry in Agarak. Many of the Iranian tourists stop in Meghri and Agarak to go to the restaurants, cafes, and stores. The Persian language is in high demand in Agarak with frequent Persian-language signs, and many of the locals engaged in services are proficient in colloquial Persian. The population of Agarak since 1908

608-597: The Angeghakot Reservoir and continues its journey to the Tolors Reservoir which is located in the area of Sisian and Ayri. From that reservoir the water flows to the Shamb HPP. From Shamb reservoir that was constructed beyond the Shamb HPP water reaches the regulation pool, from where it proceeds to the Tatev HPP via a turbine pipe. The Vorotan Cascade is one of the main power generation complexes in Armenia. It provides both peak and base load power. It

640-562: The Vorotan Cascade operating company for US$ 180 million. ContourGlobal has started a six-year refurbishment program to modernize the plants and improve their operational performance, as well as safety, reliability, and efficiency, with the total investment of $ 70 million. This is the biggest investment US investment in Armenia. The International Finance Corporation , a member of the World Bank Group , did 20% of

672-519: The end of the 1970s. The Vorotan Cascade continued to supply electricity mainly to non-ferrous metallurgy industry in nearby Agarak . After Armenia gained independence, the Voratan Cascade belonged to the state-owned energy company Armenergo. In 1997, the Vorotan cascade was separated from Armenergo into a separate state owned company. Modernization of the cascade started in 2003 by help of

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704-458: The entire population of Agarak. The Agarak Copper-Molybdenum mine complex produces copper and molybdenum concentrate through bulk-selective flotation recovery of molybdenum and copper minerals. It was fully acquired by GeoProMining company in 2007. The Meghri custom house and the border checkpoint with Iran are situated in the territory of Agarak. The construction of the Armenian section of

736-592: The highest-head hydroelectric power plant in the territory of the former Soviet Union and by using Pelton turbines. The plant includes the Tatev Dam which is a 41-metre (135 ft) high and 107-metre (351 ft) embankment type dam of sandy gravel. It includes also the daily regulation reservoir. The dam creates the Tatev Reservoir. The water intake on the left bank of the Vorotan River has capacity of 25 cubic metres per second (880 cu ft/s) and

768-609: The import of oil products to the country by half. The design work of the Complex began in 1954 and it was constructed between 1961 and 1989. The Tatev hydroelectric power plant (HPP) was completed in December 1970, the Shamb HPP in 1978, and the Spandaryan HPP] in 1989. Despite the plans, Azerbaijan was against the import of electricity from Armenia, thus hindering the scheduled renovation and capacity expansion to take place at

800-677: The nearby village of Kuris , north of Agarak, and the Aknakhach church in Agarak. The Geographical and Statistical Dictionary of the Russian Empire, mentions that the village of Agarak, as of 1861, was located in the Ordubad uezd of the Erivan Governorate . The village at that time was notable for the mine and factory located there. According to the publication, in 1860, the village produced 500 pounds of copper. Agarak

832-515: The settlement. The workers along with their families were brought to Agarak from the nearby villages, turning Agarak into an important industrial centre at the southern region of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic . Following the independence of Armenia in 1991, Agarak became an urban municipality within the newly formed Syunik Province and the first bridge connecting Armenia to Iran was established. However, as

864-413: The spillway has total capacity of 312 cubic metres per second (11,000 cu ft/s). Water runs from the water intake through the 18-kilometre (11 mi) long free-flow diversion tunnel to the delivery chamber. The 139.4-metre (457 ft) long and 4-metre (13 ft) high tail-water canal is connected with an irrigation water outlet. The pressure chamber has a diameter of 20 metres (66 ft) and

896-442: The threshold level of 1,293.05 metres (4,242.3 ft). It is connected to the plant by a 1,855-metre (6,086 ft) pressure conduit, and to the 80,000-cubic-metre (65 acre⋅ft) daily regulation reservoir by the sluice-feeder. The rated head of the plant is 568.8 metres (1,866 ft). The Shamb HPP is located near the village of Shamb on the right bank of the Vorotan River at the altitude of 1,328 metres (4,357 ft). It

928-402: The total investment. The Vorotan River has length of 178 kilometres (111 mi), the fall of 1,223 metres (4,012 ft), and the natural annual flow of 18.6 cubic metres per second (660 cu ft/s) for the link of Tatev. The source of the river is on 3,045 metres (9,990 ft) of the height and starts like a stream, accepting numerous ponds and streams. The Vorotan Cascade includes

960-605: The €2.7 million grant of the European Union which was used for rehabilitation of the Tatev HPP of the Vorotan Cascade, and the Argel HPP . Rehabilitation works were conducted by Voith Siemens Hydro Power Generation . Next rehabilitation project was launched in 2010, financed by the €51 million credit from the German development bank KfW . Rehabilitation works started in 2012. In 2015, ContourGlobal purchased

992-417: Was founded in 1949 as a labour settlement to accommodate the workers at the nearby copper-molybdenum combine. In 1954, it gained the status of an urban-type settlement . During the first days of its foundation, the settlement was mainly home to 2-storied residential buildings. Later, with the expansion of the copper-molybdenum combine by the end of the 1970s, 3, 4 and 5-storied buildings were also constructed in

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1024-565: Was mentioned in the 12th and 13th centuries by historian Stepanos Orbelian as a rural settlement. However, the region was historically known for its copper and lead mines. The current name of the village is derived from the nearby village of Agarak , literally meaning farm or estate in Armenian . Two churches dating back to the 17th century lie in the vicinity of Agarak. The church of Surp Amenaprkich (the Holy Saviour), located in

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