Azad Dam
Azad Dam is a rock-fill embankment dam with a clay core on the Gura River, located approximately to west of Sanandaj in Kurdistan Province, Iran. Owned by the Iran Water and Power Resources Development Co, the project serves as a critical source of drinking water for Sanandaj and supports limited hydroelectric power generation.
While the main dam structure and a small conventional power plant have been operational since 2015, the project has shifted its strategic focus from long-term agricultural development to emergency urban water security. As of 2025, a major planned pumped-storage power station at the site remains dormant.
Specifications
The dam is a rock-fill embankment type with a clay core. Although some databases list the height as, official engineering reports confirm the height is from the foundation. The dam has a crest length of and a total reservoir capacity of.
The water transfer system has been executed in phases to address regional water crises.
In response to severe quality issues at the Qeshlaq Dam, a project to pipe high-quality water directly from Azad Dam to the Sanandaj water treatment plant was fast-tracked. Inaugurated by President Ebrahim Raisi in December 2022, this pipeline includes a vertical pump lift and supplies 57 million cubic meters annually, securing drinking water for approximately 700,000 people.
The original goal of supplying the agricultural plains of Qorveh and Dehgolan is only partially complete. While a transfer line to the Qucham Dam was finished in 2021, the final distribution network remains unfunded and incomplete as of 2025, requiring significant new investment estimated at 3,500 billion Tomans.
Hydroelectric Power
Conventional Plant
A conventional hydroelectric plant has been operational since August 2015. It utilizes three Francis turbines. However, power generation has been secondary to water supply; between 2015 and 2024, the plant averaged only ~44 GWh annually, less than half its planned output.
The complex includes a design for a pumped storage power plant intended for grid stability. The design features an underground powerhouse and a vertical penstock shaft. Despite being a project of national strategic importance, the PSP is currently assessed as "dormant" or stalled, with resources having been diverted to the water transfer projects.
As of 2025, the dam faces dual threats. A severe regional drought has led to a significant decline in reservoir levels. Simultaneously, the water quality is threatened by untreated sewage from 57 upstream villages, necessitating a new 580 billion Toman sanitation project to protect the reservoir's purity.