Top 10 Largest Water Reservoirs in the World

Water Reservoirs refer to man-made water storage systems that are made to store water either for consumption or to produce energy, also known as hydroelectric power. The top 10 largest water reservoirs are Lake Kariba, Bratsk Reservoir, Lake Nasser, Lake Guri, Akosombo Dam, Guri Dam, Aswan High Dam, WAC Bennett Dam, Krasnoyarsk Dam, Zeya Dam, Robert Bourassa Dam.

In this article, will discuss each of the 10 Largest Water Reservoirs in the world.

Largest Water Reservoirs in the World

Reservoirs play an important role in ensuring the proper storage and flow of water. They play an important role in regulating farming practices and other beneficial activities. These reservoirs are also engineered to provide water throughout the year. The reservoirs are spread across the USA, Russia, and other regions.

List of Top 10 Largest Water Reservoirs

Among the top 10 largest water reservoirs worldwide Kariba Dam of Zimbabwe is the largest Water Reservoirs of the world. The top 10 largest water reservoirs are listed below.

Name	Location	Nominal Volume
Kariba Dam	Zimbabwe	180.6 km3
Bratsk Dam	Russia	169 km3
Akosombo Dam	Ghana	150 km3
Daniel Johnson Dam	Canada	141.85 km3
Guri Dam	Venezuela	135 km3
Aswan High Dam	Egypt	132 km3
W.A.C Bennett Dam	Canada	74.3 km3
Krasnoyarsk Dam	Russia	73.3 km3
Zeya Dam	Russia	68.4 km3
Robert Bourassa Dam	Canada	61.71 km3

10. Robert-Bourassa Dam, Canada

This dam impounds the La Grande River in northern Quebec, Canada.

• It has a capacity of 61.7 billion cubic metres and spans up to 2,815 km² of surface area.
• It is 162m in height and 2,835m in length.
• It was constructed between 1974 and 1981 and is owned by Hydro-Quebec
• It generates up to 5,616 MW of energy and has 16 Francis turbines.

9. Zeya Dam, Russia

The Zeya Rive in the Amur Oblast of Russia borders North of China.

• The storage capacity of the dam is 68.42 billion and it covers 2,419 km²
• The dam is 112 meters high.
• It was built between 1964 and 1975 by Zeyagesstroy and Bureyagesstroy and is owned by RusHydro.
• The dam has a capacity of generating 1290 MW of energy and has the world’s first adjustable-blade diagonal flow turbines.

8. Krasnoyarsk Dam, Russia

This dam impounds the Yenisey River and has a storage capacity of 73.3 billion cubic metres.

• The surface area of this damn is 2,000 km², and the shoreline goes up 1560km.
• The dam is 124m high and 1065m long.
• It was built between 1956 and 1972.
• The dam produces 6,000 MW of energy to be used to power aluminum plants.
• It also helps with irrigation purposes.

7. WAC Bennet Dam

The WAC Bennett Dam in Canada is the seventh-largest water reservoir. It is located on the Peace River in British Colombia.

• The dam has created Williston Lake.
• It has a storage capacity of 74 billion metres and a surface area of 1,773 km².
• This dam, operated by B.C. Hydro, was built between 1961 and 1967.
• This dam generates power up to 2,790 MW, and the power station is known as the G.M. Shrum Generating Station.

6. Aswan High Dam

The Aswan Dam is the sixth-largest dam in the world. It stores up to 132 billion cubic metres.

• It impounds the Nile and created Lake Nasser.
• This dam was built by the Institute Hydro Project of Russia in collaboration with some Egyptian engineering companies. The total cost of building this dam was $1bn.
• It was built between 1960 and 1968.
• The dam produces 2,100 MW of electricity and has 12 Francis turbines
• Apart from generating electricity, it also controls flooding, provides water for irrigation and improves navigation across the Nile
• It is 111m tall, 3,830m long, and 980m wide.

5. Guri Dam, Venezuela

With a storage capacity of 135 billion cubic meters, this dam is the fifth-largest water reservoir dam.

• It is 1300m in length and 16m in height.
• This dam created the Guri Lake, which is 4,000 km².
• The electricity generated from this dam serves 70 per cent of the energy needs of the region. It produces up to 10,000MW of hydroelectricity
• The dam was constructed in two stages. Once in 1962 and another in 1986.
• It is operated by CVG Electrification del Caroni, CA.

4. Daniel Johnson Dam, Canada

Also known as the Manic 5 Dam, this reservoir is the fourth biggest in the world.

• The dam has created the Manicouagan River and has a water storage capacity of 139.8 billion cubic metres/
• The surface area of the reservoir is 1,973 km².
• The damn provides a stunning landscape with multiple arches and a hollow body buttress dam. It has 13 arches and 14 buttresses.
• The dam was built from 1959 to 1968 and is owned by Hydro-Quebec.
• It produces 2660 MW of electricity and has two power stations.
• It is 1,310.6m long and 213.97m high.

3. Akosombo Dam, Ghana

Located in Ghana, the Akosombo Dam is the third-largest dam.

• It created Lake Volta, which is 8,5000 km². It impounds over 144 billion cubic metres of water.
• It is the world’s biggest reservoir in terms of its surface area.
• It was built between 1961 and 1966 by Impregilo-Italy and is owned by the Volta River Authority.
• The motive behind building this dam was to generate electricity. Recently, it also provided a livelihood to at least 300,000 people through its fishing industry.
• The dam is 700m long and has 12 million cubic metres of surface area.

2. Bratsk Dam, Russia

Located in Siberia, the Bratsk Dam is the second-largest dam in the world.

• Its storage consists of a 169.27 billion cubic meter reservoir.
• It was built on the Angara River from 1954 to 1964 by Bratskgesstroy (formerly Nizhneangargesstroy management).
• Currently owned by Irkutskernergo, the dam covers a surface area of 5,540 km².
• A rail line runs along the top of the damn, which is 125m high and 1425m in length.
• It produces hydroelectricity of 45000 MW.

1. Kariba Dam, Zimbabwe

The Kariba Dam is located in Zimbabwe and is known as the biggest dam in the world in terms of capacity for storing water. It is located in Lake Kariba and stores up to 185 cubic meters of water.

• The surface area of this dam is 5,580 km². It is also the widest dam, covering up to 280 km in length and 32 km in width.
• This dam was built between 1955 and 1959 by Impresit of Italy and is owned by the Zambezi River Authority.
• The dam stands as high as 128 meters in height and has two power stations that produce up to 1,470 MW of energy.

Conclusion

Thus, it can be asserted that these largest water reservoirs play an important part not only in storing water but also in generating electricity, irrigation, and transportation. These span vast areas of land and store extraordinary amounts of water. These dams are also attributed to preventing flooding and although debates have arisen regarding the displacement of communities due to building these reservoirs, these dams have been efficiently serving the nation for decades.

FAQs on Top 10 Largest Water Reservoirs

Name the Largest Water Reservoir in the World.

According to some sources, Lake Kariba is the biggest water reservoir. It is located in Africa and stores up to 185 cubic kilometres of water.

Name the 10th Largest Water Reservoir in the World.

The 10th largest water reservoir in the world is called Rober Bourassa Dam. It has a capacity of 61.7 billion cubic meters.

Name the Largest Dam in India.

The largest dam in India is called Tehri Dam. This is 575 in length and is located on the Bhagirathi river of Uttarakhand.

Name the Largest Dam in Asia.

The Hirakud Dam in Mahanadi is the largest dam in Asia. It is the longest major earthen dam in Asia.