A mini hydro-electric power station operates at times of peak flow and is connected to the national grid.

The dam is connected to reservoirs in Maitland, Cessnock and Newcastle by an 80-kilometre (50 mi) gravitation main.

[3] The Act appropriated £A1,049,000 as the estimated cost of construction of the dam, with additional funds set aside for land resumption.

In 1995 the seepage potential was reduced under the northern abutment and in 2003 an improved drainage system for the dam's foundations was installed and the left parapet wall was raised to prevent overtopping in a major flood.

[1] Following a report by the Health Rivers Commission, in 1998 the Minister for Urban Affairs and Planning, Craig Knowles, announced that a small hydro-electric power station would be installed in the Chichester Dam in order to generate electricity, reduce greenhouse emissions and allow surplus power to be sold back to the grid.