Amistad Dam & Power

International Boundary and Water Commission, U.S. SectionVal Verde CountyERCOT

Amistad Dam & Power is a conventional hydroelectric plant with two generating units totaling 66 MW of nameplate capacity in Val Verde County, Texas. It sits on the U.S. side of Amistad Dam, a joint U.S.-Mexico structure on the Rio Grande near Del Rio. The dam and its American powerhouse are owned and operated by the International Boundary and Water Commission, U.S. Section, a State Department agency that manages the reservoir for flood control, water conservation and hydropower. The U.S. power plant was completed in 1983, with the two 33 MW units entering service that June and October, while Mexico's companion plant on the other bank followed in 1987. The facility settles into ERCOT at its own AMISTAD_ALL node. Because the dam is a binational structure, the plant's generation depends on treaty-based water-sharing rules with Mexico that fluctuate with reservoir levels and drought. Federal dam-safety reviews have flagged sinkhole activity at Amistad Dam in recent years, and the U.S. and Mexican sections have been planning structural repairs, though these issues concern the dam's safety rating rather than the power plant's operating status.