The Chinese government under the chairmanship of Xi Jinping has approved the construction of a landmark hydroelectric power plant. The work will take place on the sacred Yarlung Tsangpo River, in the Tibet Autonomous Region, which is home to a third of the country’s resources.
The hydroelectric power station is the most expensive infrastructure ever built worldwide
According to Hong Kong newspaper South China Morning Post, the project will use the latest technological developments in its construction and add large wind and solar energy installations in the area. China is putting all its chips into this gigantic structure because it will be the key to achieving net zero emissions by 2060.
The project aims to promote the development of energy such as solar and wind energy, called clean energy, in the region. Moreover, this is expected to generate up to 300 billion kWh per yearwhich corresponds to the energy needs of 300 million people per year.
According to an official statement, the project aims to take a major step in China’s green and low-carbon energy transition.
According to the state agency Xinhua, it will be located in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River, which crosses the Tibetan plateau and forms the world’s deepest gorge.
Due to this location, on the edge of the Indian tectonic plate, special measures are needed to protect the area against earthquakes and adapt to the specific geology. For this reason, it will entail a corresponding investment of about one trillion yuan, that is, more than 130,000 million euros at the exchange rate, making it the most expensive infrastructure ever built worldwide.
In addition, according to the Chinese authorities, energy production alone will reach 70 million kW, so the location is essential, because in addition to the large waterfall, the lower reaches of the river a drop of more than 2,000 meters over 50 km.
This project in turn requires a major engineering effort, as they will have to drill the Namcha Barwa mountain, with tunnels between 4 and 20 km long to divert 2,000 cubic meters of the river flow per second.
The project will triple the generation capacity of the famous Three Gorges Dam
This hydropower plant is expected to triple the generating capacity of the famous Three Gorges Dam, located in Hubei Province, also in China, the largest hydropower project in the world and the largest dam in the world today.
The Three Gorges do an enormous technical construction that changed the course of the Yangtze River, transformed China’s landscape and revolutionized the country’s ability to generate renewable energy.
This project was designed with the aim of providing electricity and calming the strong floods that have affected millions of people in the area.
However, its benefits have been somewhat overshadowed by the controversies the work has faced due to its social, environmental and cultural impact.
The hydroelectric power station It has a capacity of 22,500 megawatts (MW) at maximum power and 88.2 billion kWh per year. The dam generates enough energy to power entire cities like Shanghai, making it the largest facility of its kind in the world.
Similarly, producing electricity from hydropower allowed China to reduce its use of coal, a highly polluting substance.