Ourkiss dam is situated in Algerian province of Oum El Bouaghi, approx. 25 km south of Ain Fakroun city. This structure is a part of an ambitious water-treatment project that is being realized in the north-eastern part of the country, aiming at upgrading the present system of long-distance distribution of water to the areas suffering from shortage of this precious natural resource.
The key part of the entire system is Beni Haroun reservoir dam with the capacity of 963 mil. m of water. At the time of its completion in 2001, the structure represented the world's biggest dam built with the use of roller-compacted concrete (RCC technology).
Further components of the system – Oued Athmania reservoir dam, Ouled Hamla storage reservoir, Oued Seguin and Ain Kercha pumping stations – are located southwards. The pipeline interconnecting the above mentioned waterworks splits in two directions by Ain Kercha station – the western branch runs to Koudiat Medaouar dam, the eastern one to Ourkiss dam. To cover the distance between the Beni Haroun and Ourkiss dams, water travels more than 170 km.
From the construction perspective, the dike of Ourkiss reservoir is an earth-fill dam. After a detailed research of subsoil and the materials intended to be used for the dam construction, a decision was made to modify the project design and to add a synthetic insulation layer on the side of the dam's upstream face. The lining material's function is being fulfilled by JUNIFOL PEHD geomembrane 2,5 mm thick,with both surfaces protected by a non-woven geotextile. Further layer placed on the upper side of the membrane is an aggregate backfill, while the final top layer is represented by a rock fill of boulders.
The dam is 107 m long at the crest and 8 m wide (with max. 261 m at the pit base), reaching 40 m in height. The capacity of the reservoir is 65 mil. m of water; one part of it is used for irrigation purposes and another part saturates the needs of population of Oum El Bouaghi, Ain Beida, Ain Kercha, Ain M'lila a Ain Fakroun cities.
