About Ricobayo Dam

Ricobayo is an arch dam on the Esla river in the province of Zamora, Castilla y León. Originally completed in 1934, it was one of the first large hydroelectric dams built in Spain and holds 1,145 million cubic metres. The dam was heightened in the 1990s to increase its capacity. Ricobayo is a purely hydroelectric facility and forms part of the Duero basin's extensive hydropower system. The Esla is one of the most powerful rivers in the Duero catchment, and Ricobayo's substantial storage capacity makes it valuable for managing seasonal flow variations. The reservoir lies in the sparsely populated Zamoran countryside, an area of gentle hills, cereal agriculture, and traditional pastoral farming.