Three Gorges Project generates 1 trillion kWh of electricity

YICHANG — The Three Gorges power plant, the world's largest hydropower project, has generated 1 trillion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity following 14 years of operation.

Power generation reached the 1-trillion-kwh mark at 12:28 pm Wednesday, equivalent to 7.1 times the electricity consumption in 2015 by China's largest city, Shanghai, according to an announcement of the China Three Gorges Corporation.

The Three Gorges Project has reduced standard coal consumption by 319 million metric tons and reduced carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide emissions by 858 million tons and 8.99 million tons respectively, compared with thermal power generation, the document said.

The Three Gorges Project, launched in 1993, is a multi-functional water control system consisting of a dam, 32 hydropower turbo-generators with a generating capacity of 700,000 kilowatts, a five-tier ship lock and a shiplift.

The project controls flood waters, generates electricity and helps to regulate the river's shipping traffic.

The hydropower plant has a combined generating capacity of 22.5 million kilowatts and a designed annual generation capacity of 88.2 billion kWh.