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China's highest-altitude arch dam hydropower station begins reservoir impoundment

Updated: 2025-10-15 (chinadaily.com.cn) Print

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The Yebatan Hydropower Station. [Photo/WeChat account: xzrbxinwen]

The Yebatan Hydropower Station — China's highest-altitude concrete double-curvature arch dam currently under construction — officially began reservoir impoundment on Oct 13.

Located on the Jinsha River between Baiyu county in Sichuan province and Gojo county in Xizang autonomous region, the station is a key project under China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25).

With an average elevation of 3,000 meters, the site features a 217-meter-high dam and a total installed capacity of 2.24 million kilowatts. The reservoir holds 1.08 billion cubic meters of water. Construction began in August 2022, with the first dam sections reaching their full height by September 2025 and initial power generation expected by the end of the year.

Despite extreme conditions — low oxygen, cold temperatures, and seismic challenges, engineers overcame major technical hurdles, including crack prevention. A 38.1-meter concrete core sample was successfully extracted, setting a world record for double-curvature arch dam concrete coring.

The station will generate over 10.2 billion kilowatt-hours annually, saving nearly 4 million metrci tons of coal and cutting carbon dioxide emissions by about 7.37 million tons. Its clean energy will be transmitted to central China via the world's highest-altitude ultra-high-voltage DC line, the Jinshang-Hubei 800-kilovolt UHV direct current power transmission project.

The station will play a vital role in optimizing China's energy mix and boosting sustainable development in the Sichuan-Xizang region.

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