Pātea Dam, Embankment dam in South Taranaki District, New Zealand.
Pātea Dam spans 160 meters across the Patea River and creates Lake Rotorangi, which stretches roughly 46 kilometers through the landscape. The structure is an embankment dam that holds back water to form a long, narrow reservoir.
The dam was built between 1980 and 1984 as a technical advancement for the region. Its construction used large quantities of sandstone and siltstone materials extracted locally.
Three totara wood carvings created by Patea artists line the Rotorangi Walkway and reflect local craftsmanship traditions. These sculptures tell stories connected to the surrounding land.
The dam is accessible from Ball Road north of Pātea, where a walkway of about 1.5 kilometers offers views of the surroundings. The path is straightforward to walk, though it has limited shade coverage.
The structure houses three vertical turbine generator sets plus an additional generator. These machines produce substantial electricity for the national power grid.
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