The June 1962 edition of Water Power stated that the dam was "scheduled to add 436 MW to the Bulgarian system by the end of 1965.

The inspection was initiated by reports that dams in the region had been overflowing and were hazardous, and engineers in the country warned that the problem would worsen due to snow melt and cause potential flooding.

[8] The benefits derived from the project cover power generation of 160 MW, irrigation, reservoir fisheries and drinking water supply to part of Plovdiv Province.

[10] There is a monument to the members of the World War II anti-fascist Anton Ivanov Rhodope Partisan Detachment in the area.

Continued monitoring of the level of cyanoprokaryota and their toxins was considered essential in all reservoirs for risk assessment of the water for contamination.

The locals tell a legend of a human-sized catfish called The Golden One who inhabits the depths of the dam and whose scales flicker in warm and still weather.