Three Gorges Dam

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Threegorges

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Hydroelectric gravity dam in Hubei, China

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The Three Gorges Dam in 2009

Official name
Country
Location	Sandouping, Yiling District, Hubei, China
Coordinates	30°49 23°N
Purpose
Status
Construction began	1994
Opening date	2003
Demolition date
Construction cost	$31.765 billion USD

The Three Gorges Dam ( ) is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River by the town of Sandouping, in Yiling District, Hubei province, China. It is the world's largest power station in terms of installed capacity (22,500 MW). The dam body was completed in 2006. Except for a ship lift, all of the originally planned components of the project were completed on October 30, 2008, when the last main turbine in the underground plant began production. The ship lift was completed in December 2015.

History

The idea of a dam across the Yangtze River was first proposed by Sun Yat-sen in 1919. Construction of the Three Gorges Dam began in 1994. The project was completed and fully functional by 2012. The dam was built for several reasons, including flood control, power generation, and improved navigation along the Yangtze River.

Design and Construction

The Three Gorges Dam is a gravity dam with a height of 181 meters (594 ft) and a length of 2,335 meters (7,660 ft). The dam's reservoir has a total capacity of 39.3 km³ (9.43 cu mi) and a surface area of 1,084 km² (419 sq mi). The dam's spillway is designed to handle a flow of 116,000 m³/s (4,100,000 cu ft/s).

Power Generation

The dam's hydroelectric power plant has 32 main turbines, each with a capacity of 700 MW, and two smaller turbines, each with a capacity of 50 MW, for a total installed capacity of 22,500 MW. The plant generates approximately 101.6 TWh of electricity annually.

Environmental and Social Impact

The construction of the Three Gorges Dam has had significant environmental and social impacts. The reservoir created by the dam has submerged numerous archaeological and cultural sites and displaced over 1.3 million people. The dam has also been associated with increased seismic activity and landslides in the region.

Navigation

The Three Gorges Dam includes a ship lift and a series of locks that allow vessels to navigate the Yangtze River. The ship lift, completed in 2015, is the largest and most complex in the world, capable of lifting ships of up to 3,000 tons.

See also

• List of largest power stations in the world
• List of tallest dams in the world
• Hydroelectricity
• Yangtze River
• Flood control

Related Pages

• Yangtze River
• Hydroelectricity
• Flood control
• List of largest power stations in the world
• List of tallest dams in the world