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S’wak media team visits Three Gorges Dam

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The Sarawak Media team in a photo in front of the Three Gorges Dam in Yichang, China. PHOTOS: DESMOND MARKUS

 

The Sarawak Media team in a photo in front of the Three Gorges Dam in Yichang, China. PHOTOS: DESMOND MARKUS
A view of the Dam.

YICHANG, CHINA: The eighth day of Sarawak media trip to China commenced with a visit to the Three Gorges Dam which is the world’s largest power station in terms of installed capacity (22,500 megawatts). The Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River by the town of Sandouping, in Yiling District, Yichang, Hubei province, China.

In 2014, the dam generated 98.8 terawatt-hours (TWh) and became the world record, but was later surpassed by the Itaipú Dam, which set the new world record in 2016, producing 103.1 TWh. Except for the locks, the dam project was completed and fully functional as of July 4, 2012, when the last of the main water turbines in the underground plant began production.

The ship lift was complete in December 2015. Each main water turbine has a capacity of 700 MW. The dam body was completed in 2006. Coupling the dam’s 32 main turbines with two smaller generators (50 MW each) to power the plant itself, the total electric generating capacity of the dam is 22,500 MW.

As well as producing electricity, the dam is intended to increase the Yangtze River’s shipping capacity and reduce the potential for floods downstream by providing flood storage space. China regards the project as monumental as well as a success socially and economically, with the design of state-of-the-art large turbines, and a move toward limiting greeanhouse gas emissions.

However, the dam flooded archaeological and cultural sites and displaced some 1.3 million people and is causing significant ecological changes, including an increased risk of landslides.

The dam has been controversial both domestically and abroad. It occurred during the construction of the Dam long time ago, and now the dam has become one of the most attractive tourism areas to visit. The group was also given an opportunity to ride a cruise to travel along the Yangtze River in the Three Gorges Dam area. The route took about three hours to complete from the first dam to the third dam. 

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