Aras Dam, Embankment dam and power station at Azerbaijan-Iran border.

The Aras Dam is a 1,026-metre-long embankment dam of sand fill with a clay core, rising 34 metres above the riverbed of the Aras River on the Iran-Azerbaijan border. Its crest is 8 metres wide. The dam holds the Aras Reservoir, 52 kilometres long and 6.1 kilometres wide, and its power station has four turbine-generators, two on each side, for a total of 44 MW.

The dam was built in the 1970s following an agreement between the Soviet Union and Iran to share the water resources of the river. After the Soviet Union collapsed, Azerbaijan took over the Soviet side and continued the joint arrangement with Iran.

The Aras Dam is jointly operated by Azerbaijan and Iran, making it one of the few places where two neighboring countries share a single piece of infrastructure. On both sides of the river, border installations and technical facilities mark this shared presence in a visible way.

The dam is located in a remote border zone and is generally off-limits to the general public. Anyone planning to visit the area should check in advance with the authorities of both countries, as access rules may vary depending on which side you approach from.

The reservoir holds 1.35 cubic kilometres of water at a normal elevation of 777.5 metres above sea level, with a surface area of 145 square kilometres. It stretches 52 kilometres along the Aras River and reaches a maximum width of 6.1 kilometres, with an average depth of 18.2 metres.