Ten years ago in August, Ames began the award-winning Red Rock Hydro Project on the Des Moines River near Pella, Iowa.
The work scope included construction of a powerhouse with a two-unit turbine generator on the downstream side of an existing dam and an intake structure on the front of the dam.
During the project’s first 18 months, crews performed the majority of civil and underground work. In February 2016, the project’s focus shifted to construction of the powerhouse. Work on the intake structure began in the fall of 2016.
After the intake structure was completed and tested, crews successfully cored through the dam in October 2019 to enable water to pass through the new powerhouse. Following commissioning and testing in the summer of 2020, a September ribbon cutting officially heralded project completion.
Today, the hydroelectric plant provides clean, renewable power for 18,000 homes. The project earned numerous awards, including the 2021 Outstanding Project Award from the Deep Foundations Institute (DFI) and a 2021 Award of Merit
in the Energy/Industrial category from ENR Midwest.