The subject of the project was to assess the safety and operational capability of the hydraulic structure. This concerned an extensive inspection of technical and safety supervision and individual construction parts of the hydraulic structure. The inspection itself, tests, measurements and further survey took place both in the conventional manner, and in the presence of specialized professionals (divers, mountaineers, etc.). An integral part of the entire action was comprehensive inspections of mechanical technological units. At the end of the project, a report was prepared, regarding the most serious findings, proposed repairs and recommendations for further operation of the hydraulic structure.

The Derbendikhan dam lies on the Diyala/Sirwan River approximately 65 km southeast of Sulaymaniyah and 230 km northeast of Baghdad. It is a multi-purpose hydraulic structure. The dam is constructed in a narrow gorge on layers of sedimentary rocks such as claystone, sandstone, limestone and conglomerate. The construction of the dam began in 1956 and was completed in 1961. The total volume of the reservoir at the normal operating level 485.00 m a.s.l. is 3,000 mil. m3 (about 4 times larger than the volume of the Orlik reservoir).