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The modernisation and repowering of dams are crucial to ensuring sustainable water management and strengthening climate resilience in Portugal. Under the national "Water That Unites" strategy, three priorities stand out: the optimisation of existing infrastructures, the increase of storage capacity and the development of new hydraulic works.

With many dams now over 50 years old, safety becomes even more critical. Natural ageing, combined with more frequent extreme events, calls for rehabilitation, continuous monitoring and predictive models capable of anticipating structural behaviour and improving risk management. The integration of smart sensors and real‑time monitoring systems is now essential to ensure the safety and performance of these infrastructures.

This conference theme will address key questions such as:

- What are the medium-term prospects for Portuguese dam engineering in both the national and international contexts?

- How should emerging safety challenges be addressed in the optimization of water resource management particularly considering the increased frequency of reservoir level fluctuations, structural rehabilitation and dam raising?

- In what ways can the resilience of dams be improved in response to the increasing occurrence of extreme events?

LLC 2026 will take place on 21 and 22 October, and you can register HERE.