Ködeltalsperre, Water reservoir in Nordhalben, Germany

The Ködeltalsperre, also called Trinkwassertalsperre Mauthaus, is a drinking water reservoir near Nordhalben in Upper Franconia. Its dam is a rockfill embankment with an inner clay seal, founded on rock, with a control tunnel running beneath its main axis. Water is drawn through a 67 m high intake tower divided into 16 storeys, which stands in the water as a grey concrete cylinder topped by a wider structure with vertical window openings.

Jakob Degen, royal Bavarian district administrator in Kronach, proposed three reservoirs in the Frankenwald around 1905, but the plans failed for lack of profitability. Construction of the Mauthaus reservoir finally began on 26 August 1968 after some 85 hectares of forest were cleared. It was inaugurated on 21 May 1973 by interior minister Bruno Merk, and drinking water was first drawn in 1975.

The reservoir system supplies drinking water to the Upper Franconia region while generating hydroelectric power through three machine sets including a Francis turbine.

The reservoir lies near Nordhalben in the Kronach district of Upper Franconia. The dam is a rockfill embankment with a clay core, and a 280 m control tunnel runs beneath its main axis. The 67 m intake tower, divided into 16 storeys, stands in the water and is the structure visible from the shore. The overflow with two weir flaps sits on the left slope.

The 67-metre intake tower, divided into 16 storeys, stands in the water and is reached by a 263-metre access tunnel. The reservoir flooded four mills, including the Mautmühle and the Breitengrundmühle, and seven more mills were demolished in the water protection zone.