The Allal al Fassi Dam is a embankment dam

Embankment dam

An embankment dam is a massive artificial water barrier. It is typically created by the emplacement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil, sand, clay and/or rock. It has a semi-permanent waterproof natural covering for its surface, and a dense, waterproof...

 located 18 km (11 mi) northeast of Sefrou

Sefrou

Sefrou, is a city in central Morocco, situated in the Fes-Boulman region. According to the 2004 census it had a population of 63,872...

 on the Sebou River

Sebou River

Sebou is a river in northern Morocco. The river is 458 kilometres long and has an average water flow of 137 m3/s, which makes it the largest North African river by volume. The source is in the Middle Atlas mountains. It passes near the city of Fes and discharges to the Atlantic Ocean in Mehdia...

 in the Fès-Boulemane

Fès-Boulemane

Fès-Boulemane ) is one of the sixteen regions of Morocco. It is situated in northern Morocco. It covers an area of 19,795 km² and has a population of 1,573,055 . The capital is Fès....

 region of Morocco. Completed in 1991, the dam provides water for irrigation and hydroelectric power production. The dam's hydroelectric power station is located 18 km (11 mi) to the north on the southern bank of the Idriss I Dam's reservoir

Reservoir

A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...

 at 34°05′43"N 04°37′13"W. Water reaches the power plant and being diverted by the Allal al Fassi Dam via an intake on the right bank of the reservoir. The water flows through a 15.45 km (10 mi) long tunnel before reaching a compensating basin. From the basin, water is sent through pipelines and finally penstock

Penstock

A penstock is a sluice or gate or intake structure that controls water flow, or an enclosed pipe that delivers water to hydraulic turbines and sewerage systems. It is a term that has been inherited from the technology of wooden watermills....

s to 3 x 80 MW Francis turbine

Francis turbine

The Francis turbine is a type of water turbine that was developed by James B. Francis in Lowell, Massachusetts. It is an inward-flow reaction turbine that combines radial and axial flow concepts....

-generators. Once used for power generation, the water is discharged into the Idriss I Reservoir. About 300000000 cubic metre of water is transferred through the power station annually. The power station was commissioned in 1994 and generates 220 GWh on average annually. The dam was named after named after the famous Moroccan Allal al-Fassi

Allal al-Fassi

Muhammad Allal al-Fassi , was a Moroccan politician, writer, poet and Islamic scholar.-Politics:He was born in Fes, Morocco, and founded the nationalist Istiqlal party which was a driving force in the Moroccan struggle for independence from French colonial rule...

.