The dam serves an associated hydroelectric power plant with a 1,275 megawatts (1,710,000 hp) installed capacity.

[1] Eletrobrás Furnas began studies of the upper Tocantins River in 1981 and proposed constructing two large dams, one was at Serra da Mesa which had good geomechanical conditions.

On October 24, 1996, the dam began to inundate and create its reservoir and it was full in 1998; around the same time, the power station's generators became operational.

The reservoir created by the dam has a capacity of 54,400,000,000 cubic metres (44,100,000 acre⋅ft) and surface area of 1,784 square kilometres (689 sq mi).

After exiting the turbines, the water is discharged from the power house via one 500-metre (1,600 ft) long tailrace tunnel.