Bicaz Dam Bicaz

For building the barage of Bicaz almost 20 villages had to be removed.

The building works for the hydro-energetical arrengement began on November 1950, when the electrification plan of the country was approved.

The costs for the project were of about 1,7 milliards of lei ( this money was for that time value) and it meant the lost of hundreds of human lifes during the works. Here, thosand of prisoners worked ( most of them, in the first years of site were political prisoners highly qualified), soldiers in service and rangers.

For the building works, almost 20 villages had to be removed. Two of them, Răpciuniţa and Cârnu totally disappeared. Over 18000 inhabitants from 2300 houses were removed.

The barage of Bicaz is 127 metres height, being the bigger wight barage ( of Romania interior rivers, being overtaken by Porţile de Fier I – The Iron Gates I ), the third of the highest barages in Romania. It is the ninth weight barage in Europe for its height. In the year of its finalization, that is in 1961, it was the fourth weight barage in Europe, for its height.

The barage of Bicaz bounds Gicovanu mountain with Obcina Horstei. It is not a single block, it is formed of 30 studs separated through tight joints , with reinforced concrete plates and copper plates . Its body is traversed by kilometres of galleries, air shafts, inspection niches. Secially equipped rooms are equipped with actioning and command installations, tracking equipments, seisming monitoring and the functioning of each element.

It is opened in Bicaz a museum with exhibits that mirror the hydro-energetic buildings on Bistriţa Valley.