Sidi Salem Dam
Dam and hydroelectric scheme, Reservoir 814 million m3 initial capacity, 555 million m3 at normal retention level; 20 MW hydroelectric station in Tunisia.
Operational
Landmark The largest dam on the Medjerda, and the anchor of the northern system that carries water to Tunis, the Sahel and Sfax.
The record
- Country
- Tunisia
- Location
- Testour
- Coordinates
- 36.590, 9.397
- Technology
- Dam and hydroelectric scheme
- Capacity
- Reservoir 814 million m3 initial capacity, 555 million m3 at normal retention level; 20 MW hydroelectric station
- Capital cost
- —
- Stage
- Operational
- Owner or client
- Ministere de l'Agriculture, des Ressources Hydrauliques et de la Peche (DGBGTH)
- Contractor
- —
- Operator
- Ministere de l'Agriculture, des Ressources Hydrauliques et de la Peche (DGBGTH)
- Finance
- —
- Award or start year
- 1977
- Commissioned
- 1981-11
Record last checked 2026-09-18.
History
- 1977-06
Construction started on the Medjerda near Testour
- 1981-11
Dam completed on 30 November 1981
- 2021-08
Siltation measured at 233.65 million m3, 28.7 per cent of initial capacity
Sources
6 references
Every field in the record above is taken from the references below. A field that none of them confirms prints as a dash.
- Structurae, Sidi-Salem Dam (Testour, 1981). structurae.net.
- Embankment dam 73 m high and 345 m long on the Medjerda, construction from June 1977, completed 30 November 1981, 20 MW station producing about 40 GWh a year, coordinates 36 deg 35 min 26.83 sec N and 9 deg 23 min 49.61 sec E. ONAGRI, Evolution de l'envasement des barrages en Tunisie (source DGBTH, data to 12 Aug 2021). onagri.nat.tn.
- Table 1 gives Sidi Salem an initial total capacity of 814 million m3 with 233.65 million m3 of sediment measured in 2021, a siltation rate of 28.7 per cent.
- FAO AQUASTAT, Geo-referenced database on dams, Africa file. firebasestorage.googleapis.com.
- (index page. fao.org.
- MENA Water Review major projects register and PPP pipeline — compiled from procurer publications, development-bank project pages and trade reporting; each record names its source.
Lists Sidi Salem at Testour on the Medjerda, 1981, 70 m high, 555 million m3 reservoir, 45 km2 reservoir area, irrigation, water supply, flood control and hydroelectricity. OpenStreetMap dam node Barrage Sidi Salem: 36.5899, 9.3970.