Brazeau Reservoir, reservoir in Alberta, Canada

Brazeau Reservoir is a large man-made lake in central Alberta along the Brazeau River. The water body stretches up to 13 kilometers long and 6 kilometers wide and is held back by a dam that powers a hydroelectric plant with a capacity of 355 megawatts.

Dam construction began in the early 1960s and finished in 1963. The first turbine started operating in 1965 and has since supplied power to homes and industries in Calgary and surrounding areas.

The Brazeau Reservoir Provincial Recreation Area, set up by the Alberta government, lies upstream of the dam, and three campgrounds line the shores. The reservoir takes its name from the Brazeau River, which it was built along at its confluence with the Elk River. The reservoir is a popular spot for fishing and boating.

The area has three campgrounds with varying facilities, from simple tent sites in wooded areas to developed spots with electrical connections. The location sits about 55 kilometers southwest of Drayton Valley and is accessible via Highway 620 or Highway 11.

The pump-back system lifts water from the outflow below the dam into the 20-kilometre reservoir, so the turbines keep running at low water levels. The Brazeau Plant is TransAlta's largest hydroelectric station at 355 MW, yet its average annual output of about 397,000 MW·h trails the smaller 120 MW Bighorn Dam, which produces around 408,000 MW·h.