Submitted By:-

Sugandh Kumar Choudhary

R1813-B41

10805900.

Term Paper

Inrtoduction:-

Official name 长江三峡水利枢纽工程Impounds Yangtze River

Locale Sandouping, Yiling District, Hubei, China

Type Gravity dam

Length 2,335 m (7,661 ft)

Height 185 m (607 ft)[1]

Base width 115 m (377 ft)

Crest width 40 m (131 ft)

Construction began December 14, 1994

Opening date 2011

Construction cost ¥180 billion

(US$26 billion)

Maintained by Three Gorges Dam Project

Reservoir information

Creates Three Gorges Reservoir

Capacity 39.3 km3 (31,861,028.5 acre·ft)

Catchment area 1,000,000 km2 (390,000 sq mi)

Surface area 1,045 km2 (403 sq mi)

Power generation information

Turbines 26 × 700 MW

Installed capacity 18,200 MW

Annual generation 80,000 GWh

Bridge information

Carries 177[vague]

Toll ¥10.00

ID number 7649.

The Three Gorges Dam (simplified Chinese: 长江三峡大坝; traditional Chinese: 長江三峽大壩; pinyin: Chángjiāng Sānxiá Dàbà) is a hydroelectric dam that spans the Yangtze River by the town of Sandouping, located in the Yiling District of Yichang, in Hubei province, China. It is the world's largest electricity-generating plant of any kind.

The dam body was completed in 2006. Except for a ship lift, the originally planned components of the project were completed on October 30, 2008, when the 26th generator in the shore plant began commercial operation. Each generator has a capacity of 700 MW.

Six additional generators in the underground power plant are not expected to become fully operational until 2011. Coupling the dam's 32 main generators with 2 smaller generators (50 MW each) to power the plant itself, the total electric generating capacity of the dam will eventually reach 22.5 GW.

The project produces electricity, increases the river's shipping capacity, and reduces the potential for floods downstream by providing flood storage space. From completion through September 2009 the dam has generated 348.4 TWh of electricity, covering more than one third of its cost.

The Chinese state regards the project as a historic engineering, social and economic success, with the design of state-of-the-art large turbines, and a move toward limiting greenhouse 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 a controversial topic both in China and abroad.

Economics

When finished, the project is expected to have cost 180 billion yuan, 12% under budget, approximately 30 billion USD. The lower costs are attributed to a low inflation rate rather than lower spending. By the end of 2008, spending had reached 148.365 billion yuan, among which 64.613 billion yuan was spent on construction, 68.557 billion yuan on relocating affected residents, and 15.195 billion yuan on financing. It is estimated that the construction cost will be recovered when the dam has generated 1,000 TWh of electricity, yielding 250 billion yuan. Full cost recovery is expected to occur ten years after the dam starts full operation.

Funding sources include the Three Gorges Dam Construction Fund, profits from the Gezhouba Dam, loans from the China Development Bank, loans from domestic and foreign commercial banks, corporate bonds, and revenue before and after the dam is fully operational. Additional charges were assessed as follows: Every province receiving power from the Three Gorges Dam has to pay ¥7.00 per MWh extra. Other provinces had to pay an additional charge of ¥4.00 per MWh. Tibet pays no surcharge.

Annual Production:-

By September 16, 2009, the plant had generated 348.4 TWh of electricity,. Its 18,300 MW installed capacity is about 4,300 MW more than Itaipu's. In July 2008 it generated 10.3 TWh of electricity, its first month over 10 TWh. On June 30, 2009, after the river flow rate increased to over 24,000 m3, all 28 generators were switched on, producing only 16,100 MW because the head available during flood season is insufficient. During an August 2009 flood, the plant first reached its maximum output for a short period.

During the November to May dry season, power output is limited by the river's flow rate, as seen in the diagrams on the right. When there is enough flow, power output is limited by plant generating capacity. The maximum power-output curves were calculated based on the average flow rate at the dam site, assuming the water level is 175 m and the plant gross efficiency is 90.15%. The actual power output in 2008 was obtained based on the monthly electricity sent to the grid.)

Several factors limited power output in 2008. First, the dam was not operating at 175 m for most of the year, reducing the water flow's potential energy. During the flood season, in order to accommodate water surges, operators lowered the water level to 145 m. Also generators were still being installed—the plant did not reach capacity until the end of the year. Note that the diagrams on the right are based on the power sent to the grid, while the table displays the total generated.

The Three Gorges Dam had for the first time reached its design-maximum reservoir water level of 175 m on 26 October, 2010, in which the intended annual power-generation capacity of 84.7 billion kwh should finally be realized.

Schedule of Three Gorges Dam Project

Three Gorges Dam Project is composed of the dam, the hydropower stations and the navigation facility. It measures 607 feet tall and the top is 3,319 yards wide. It has taken 17 years to finish the construction of the whole project, which started in 1992 and includes three stages. The first stage took five years from 1992 to 1997. During this period, the cofferdam construction and the excavation of a diversion channel in the first stage were finished. Meanwhile, a temporary ship lock on the left bank of the river and some preparation work was also completed. The second stage lasted six years from 1998 to 2003, when the cofferdam construction was in its second stage and was undertaken at the same time as the construction of the permanent ship lock and the navigation buildings. The power station facilities construction and the installation of machinery on the left bank were also completed. The third stage of the project began in 2003 and has been completed in 2009. During this period, the installation of all machinery, the construction of the power station and the dam on the right bank are finished. Now, a 3,861 square miles canyon-reservoir dam is presented to the world.

Layout of the Project

The project is composed of the dam, two power plants and navigation facilities' For a long time, efforts were engaged in the in-depth studies and researches on various schemes to determine the structural pattern, configuration and layout of the structures. And it was not until undergoing analysis by scientific researches and tests regarding hydraulics, sedimentation, structure and material, etc., that these issues were finally determined. The overall layout of the project is as the following.

The spillway is placed in the center of the river channel, i.e., on the original main river course, while the intake dam sections and non-overflow dam sections are arranged on its both sides. The powerhouses are placed on the back of the intake dam. The permanent navigation structures are located on the left bank side.

Dam

The dam is of a concrete gravity type. The total length of the dam axis is 2, 309. 47 m, with the crest elevation at 185 m and a maximum height of 175 m.

The spillway dam, which is located in the middle of the river channel, is 483 m long in total, where there are 23 bottom outlets dimensioned 7¡Á9 m with an elevation of 90 m and 22 Surface sluice gates with a net width of 8 m and a sill elevation at 158 m. In the downstream part of this section, flip bucket for energy dissipation is provided.

On both sides of the spillway dam section, there will be arranged the intake-dam and non-overflow dam sections.

With a maximum discharge capacity of 116, 000 m3/s, the project is able to discharge any possible maximum flood

Benefits from Three Gorges Project

The Three Gorges Dam, a project of great weight to Chinese nation, has been completed and so far begun to bring benefits to Chinese people in mainly four aspects: flood control, power generation, navigation and tourism.

One of the major objectives of the Three Gorges Dam is to control water levels due to frequent floods causing a historical problem around the Jinjiang River and Dongting Lake area. The project can efficiently control the water from upper stream and reduce the flood and sand pouring into Dongting Lake during the flood season, thus the sediment accumulation rate of Dongting Lake can be postponed and the threat of flood to it can be relieved.

The normal storage level of the Three Gorges Dam can be reached to 574 feet and its flood control capacity is as large as 29 billion cubic yards which will protect the Jingjiang River and the middle or the lower reaches of Yangtze River. If severe floods happen, the big dam can hold the water and discharge the flood, which wins time for transferring personnel to avoid loss of life.

Power Generation

The total capacity of the Three Gorges Dam Project is 18.2 million kilowatts and the annual power generation is 84.7 billion kilowatt hours, which greatly relieves the electricity pressure in middle and eastern China. Located in the middle of China, the Three Gorges hydropower station supplies power to the middle, eastern and southern China, that within 400 to 1,000 km economic

transmission distance of the load. The big power supply system associated by middle, eastern and southern China is formed, which creates multiplier effect between different regions, regulating effect between hydropower stations and capacity conversion effect between hydropower stations and steam power plants.

Hydropower is clean energy and environmental friendly. The operation of the Three Gorges hydropower station can reduce the emissions of ten million tons of carbon dioxide, one to two million tons of sulfur dioxide, 300,000 to 400,000 tons of oxynitride, 10,000 tons of carbon monoxide and 150,000 tons of dust. From these data, the huge contribution of the Three Gorges hydropower station to the environmental protection is definitely affirmed.

Navigation

Located in the middle reach of Yangtze River, the Three Gorges Dam will largely improve the waterway conditions from Yichang City to Chongqing City. In the dry season, the water in the lower reaches of Gezhouba Water Control Project can get ample supply, and the navigation in the upper and middle reaches of Yangtze River will be well developed. The ships of ten thousand tons can sail directly from Chongqing to Hankou and further to Shanghai. Besides, due to the improvement of the navigable waterways, the ship size and fleet size are accelerated standardization and large-sized, and the transport costs can be reduced.

Tourism

After the completion of the Three Gorges Dam Project, visitors will be delighted to see a wonder in the Yangtze River where a calm lake sits among the steep gorges. As the rising of the water, many scenic spots which originally hard to enter are now reachable. For example, in Dangyang River, the branch of Madu River, a new sight of "small three gorges" appears. The White Emperor City, which was hidden in the thick forest in the past, becomes a beautiful island standing in the center of the river. The big scenery change will attract more and more visitors to explore the Three Gorges.

CONSTRUCTION PLANNING AND SCHEDULING

1 Construction Work Quantity

The main work quantity to be done in the construction of principal structures and diversion works is as follows:

--Earth-and--rock excavation 102.59 million m3

--Earth-and--rock embankment 29. 33 million m3

--Concrete placing 27.15 million m3

--Re--bar 354. 30×103 tons

--Metal works 280. 8×103 tons

-- Installation of turbine generator 26 sets (18, 200 MW)

Work quantities broken down into details according to structures are listed in the following table.

2 River Diversion

Phased river diversion is adopted for the project construction, which is divided into three stages.

In the first stage, the sub-river on the right side of the islet will be enclosed, by taking advantage of the islet to build the earth-and--rock fill cofferdam. In this stage, the open diversion channel will be excavated and the longitudinal RCC cofferdam constructed in the construction pit' Meanwhile, the construction of the temporary shiplock will be finished on the left bank of the river. In this construction period, the river flow and navigation will still go through the main river course.

In the second stage, the construction will be started from bui lding the 2nd stage transverse cofferdams both upstream and downstream, so as to form,

together with the completed RCC longitudinal cofferdam, the 2nd stage construction pit, where, the spillway, the intake dam and the power plant on the left bank will be undergoing construction. Simultaneously, the permanent shiplock and the shiplift will be constructed on the left bank. In this stage, the river flow shall be diverted through the open diversion channel, and barge fleets and passenger boats might pass through either the open channel, or the temporary shiplock.

In the third stage, the upstream third stage RCC cofferdam is to be built to cut off the open channel to impound the reservoir to 135 m in elevation. It is at this point that the left bank power station and the permanent shiplock will be put into operation.

In the meantime, the third stage cofferdams together with the longitudinal cofferdam will form the third stage construction pit to build the right bank dam and power plant. In this period, the river flow will be discharged through the permanent bottom outlets and the temporary diversion outlets in the spillway, while the boats will pass through the permanent shiplock.

3 Scheduling

The master schedule of TGP is arranged as the following:

--Preparation and 1st stage construction 5 years (1993--1997)

--2nd stage construction 6 years (1998--2003)

--3rd stage construction 6 years (2004--2009)

Therefore, the total duration of construction will last 17 years taking into account the time for preparation. The main course of the river will be closed in 1997, and the initial two turbine-generating units will be put into operation in 2003 (the 11th year). The whole project will be completed in the year of 2009. See master construction schedule in Table 2 attached.

The yearly construction peak intensity is as the following:

--23 million m3 of earth--and-rock excavation appears in the 3rd year;

--8. 0 million m3 of earth-and-rock embankment in the 5-- 6th year;

--4. 5 million m3 of concrete placing in the 8th year;

--46 thousand tons of metal works installation in the 10th year;

--unit installation in the 12--17th years, 4 sets with 2,800MW annually.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (ElA)

The impacts of the Three Gorges Project on the environmental and ecological system have been attracting worldwide attention.

It is almost 40 years since the ElA of TGP began in 1950s' Since 1980s, the EIA of TGP has been deepened along with the improvement of legislative system of environmental protection and development of environmental science. The environmental Impact Statement of TGP¡±(EIS) jointly prepared in December 1991, by the Environmental Assessment Department of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Yangtze Valley Water Resources Protection Research Institute had passed the complete legal approval procedures at the beginning of 1992.

1 Characteristics of the Reservoir and Changes in the Hydrological Regime

(1) The total capacity of the TGP reservoir amounts to 39.3 billion m3, only accounting for 8.7 % of the yearly runoff at the dam site, and its effective capacity 16.5 billion m3, accounting for 3.6 %. Therefore, the reservoir is of a seasonal regulation one with low run-off regulation capability.

(2) The reservoir is of a canyoned and river--like reservoir with a total length of about 600 km and

average width of 1.1 km which is less than twice the width of the natural alluvial channel. The surface area of the reservoir will reach 1,084 km2, and the land area to be inundated will be 632 km2.

(3) The annual runoff downstream of the dam will keep unchanged after the operation of the reservoir, therefore, the annual flow going into the sea will not be affected. The monthly flow downstream of the dam will basically remain unchanged except for in October when the flow decreases slightly because of impoundment and the period from January to May when the flow increases slightly' The monthly flow after the operation of the reservoir will still be controlled within the natural amplitude, so that the influence on the hydrological regime downstream of the dam will not be significant.

2 Assessment System and Main Conclusions

The EIS takes the Yangtze Valley as an integrated system and divides it into sub--systems as the reservoir area, the middle and lower reach region, and the estuary region' The impacts on the natural and social environmental factors (Fig.5 -- 2 ), such as local climate, water quality, biota, rare species, inundation and resettlement, landscapes, historical relics, and so on, have overall been analyzed, qualitatively or quantitatively, by using mathematical modeling, characteristic indices, analogies, etc., according to the legislation of the State and referring to the international practice. Furthermore, the mitigation measures have also been recommended in order to alleviate the negative impacts. Finally, the ecological and environmental monitoring system has been proposed.

The main conclusions of the EIS indicate that the Three Gorges Project will exert both positive and negative impacts on the environmental and ecological system, the former mainly in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze and the latter concentrating on the reservoir area. Most of the negative impacts can be alleviated by taking suitable countermeasures, the environmental issues, therefore, will not affect the feasibility of the project.

3 Major Environmental Benefits

(1)The chief purpose of the project is for flood control. After completion of TGP, the flood control standards in the Jingjiang reach of the Yangtze River will be raised from the present less than 10—year flood frequency to a 100-- year frequency. ln case of a flood like the year of 1870 happening, a large number of losses of lives and damages to properties could be avoided' TGP will produce a safe environment for the living and the further development in the Jingjiang region where there is a population of 15 million and about 1.53 million ha fertilized farmland as well as a lot of cities and towns. Meanwhile, there will be several other benefits from the regulation of the reservoir such as control of schistosomiasis, decrease of sedimentation in Dongting Lake and extension of the lifespan of the said Lake.

(2) The project will provide huge quantity of clean energy. The hydro--plants could reduce about 50 million tons of raw coal to be burnt annually which might produce about 100 million tons of carbon dioxide, 1.2¡ª1.3 million tons

of sulphur dioxide, 10 thousand tons of carbon monoxide, 370 thousand tons of nitrogen oxides, and a large amount of waste water and waste solids as well. This contribution to the improvement of environment is worth mentioning.

(3) The project will also favour the improvement of local climate in the reservoir area and the improvement of water quality downstream of the dam during the dry season. Moreover, the operation of the project would ease the salt water intrusion in the estuary region. And, the increase of water surface area will promote the aquatic farming in the reservoir,

4 Main Negative Impacts and Mitigation Measures

(1 ) Landscape and Cultural Heritage

After the impoundment of the reservoir, higher water level and wider channel would change the scenery of the canyon to a certain extent' The elevations of mountains and peaks along the banks in the gorges range from 800 to 1, 100 m in nature. The elevations of the famous 12 peaks in Wuxi a Gorge are around 1,000 m. The most reputed Goddess Peak is more than 900 m above sea level. The normal pool level of the reservoir at 175 m will result in an increase of 40 to 110 m higher in the Gorges than at present. So the steep canyon enclosing the river valley will be basically untouched, even though the rapids and dangerous shoals will be eliminated. Better navigation condition will provide access to new scenic views, for instance, the n Mini Three Gorges" along the Daning River' The magnificent Three Gorges Project shall certainly become a new hot spot of tourism.

The impoundment of the reservoir will affect 44 archaeological sites and ancient monuments. Of them, Baiheliang, the famous ancient low water record tablets near Fuling city, is protected by the State, other 5 by provinces' The most famous ones, however, will not be inundated such as the Ghost City in Fengdu county, the Baidicheng Town in Fengjie county and the Huangling Temple in Yichang city.

According to the planning, efforts will be made to salvage the cultural heritage that may be inundated. For example, the Baiheliang low water tablets and the Zhangfei Temple will be relocated and exhibited in suitable places. Because only the foundation will be affected, the Shibaozhai in Zhongxi an county and the Quyuan Temple in Zigui county will be protected by foundation consolidation and strengthening.

(2) Rare Species

There are 47 rare or endangered plant species protected by the nation in the surrounding areas affected by the reservoir, most of them grow between 300 to 1,200 m above sea level. There is little natural vegetation in the inundated area. The impoundment, therefore, will not bring about serious losses.

Totally 26 rare animals of class I and E protected by the nation are living in the remote and

mountainous areas and will not be affected by the project.

The rare animals in the Yangtze River, such as Chinese dolphin and Chinese sturgeon have been protected by means of natural reserves and artificial spawning. The construction and operation of TGP will affect their habitats to a certain degree so it is necessary to intensify the implementation of countermeasures continually.

Systematic survey and research indicate that the habitats of Yangtze alligator and Siberian crane will not be affected.

PROJECT INVESTMENT AND ECONOMlC & FINANCIAL ANALYSIS

1 Cost Estimate

Based on the price at the end of May 1993, the total static cost estimate of TGP is 90.09 billion RMB Yuan (exclusive of the escalation and interests during the construction period), among which 50. 09 billion is for the project itself, 40 billion for the inundation treatment and resettlement. It is difficult to predict the inflation during the long construction period and interests for multi -financing sources. The dynamic cost of TGP is 203' 9 billion yuan by rough estimate.

2 Financing

The construction period of the project is 17 years' But from the 11th year (2003), the project could benefit itself from the power generation which would be the main channel of the project investment in the later construction period. So the key investment problem is the funds needed for construction during them period of 11 years before power generation.

The project needs a extremely large sum of fund, but with its huge quantity of power generation, the project itself is fully capable of repaying its debt. The investment fund will come from several channels.

(1)Capital from the State

TGP is a project owned by the central government. Its investment offered by the central government as the capital, consists of three different sources.

¢Ù It was determined by the State Council that a tax of 0.3¡ª0.7 cent/kW¡¤h would be levied from 1992 on the power networks all over the country as the TGP construction fund, with an exception of poverty-stricken regions and the electricity used for agricultural irrigation and drainage purposes. The standards of taxes levied are different depending on whether the regions are located in the direct beneficiary areas or not. The power generation in China reached 1,000 billion kW¡¤h in 1995, and it will increase year by year. The taxes levied for TGP's construction fund by the end of 1996 accounts for 50 % or so of the total fund needed for TGP's construction.

• The Gezhouba Power Plant which has an annual generating output of 15.7 billion kW¡¤h is owned by Three Gorges Project Development Corporation (owner of TGP ). The partial revenue of the Gezhouba Hydropower Plant can be used for TGP's construction.

• TGP will start power generation in the 11th year of its construction and it can produce in total about 500 billion kW¡¤h of electricity by the 20th year. The capital obtained there from cannot only be used for the later construction of the project, but also for the loan reimbursement.

(2) Loans

The above mentioned fund as the capital from the central government will be the basic source of the project financing. But compared with the extremely large sum demanded, there still exists a big shortfall of funds which will be filled up by the following financing channels.

• Domestic loans and bonds

The loans will be mainly from the China Development Bank, about 3 billion Yuan each year. One billion Yuan domestic bonds have been issued in early 1997.

• Foreign loans

These will be carried Out based on actual conditions, mainly in combination with export credit of equipment procurement, and meanwhile, taking into consideration of accepting loans from foreign governments, international financial organizations or business loans.

3 Economic and Financial Analysis

During the feasibility study and the preliminary design stages, overall analysis has been carried Out respectively on the feasibility and rationality of the project in the respects of economy and finance.

Calculated with the common international and domestic economic evaluation methods, and adopting the shadow price and 12 % social discount rate, TGP's economic internal rate of return is 15. 6 %--14. 8 %, which exceeds the legal social discount rate in China.

According to the present domestic financial and accounting system and the stipulations thereof and calculated with the financial price at present, TGP's financial internal rates of return are all more than 10 % in different fund-raising sources. The loan reimbursement and investment recovery of TGP mainly rely on the income from power generation. TGP has strong reimbursement capability after its completion due to a huge power generation of 84.68 billion kW ¡¤h per year. It is estimated that all loans can be repaid and all the investment can be recovered in several years after completion of the project. It is, therefore, no doubt that TGP is rational in economy and feasible in finance.

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION AND RECENT PROGRESS OF THE PROJECT CONSTRUCTION

1 Investigation, Planning and Design

The concept of building the Three Gorges Dam was initiated early in this century. Preliminary investigation and planning were done in 1940s' From the middle of 1950s to present, more than 40 years extensive efforts have been made on the investigation, planning, design and scientific research for the Three Gorges Project. Since the project is huge in scale and complicated in technology, involving wide specific fields such as several scientific and technical disciplines, social economy and environment protection, thousands of engineers and technicians from Changjiang Water Resources Commission(Yangtze Valley Planning Office ) which is in charge of the investigation, planning, design and research of the project, and a large number of experts and scholars from related universities, research institutes and equipment manufacturers all over the country have participated in the study of the project. The nationwide experts were organized on several occasions for verification and review of the project. The reexamination work lasted three years from 1986 to 1989 with 412 experts from varieties of fields involved.

Since 1940s, especially since 1980s, many experts from such countries as the United States, Canada, the former Soviet Union, Sweden, Italy, Japan, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, France, Brazil, etc., have also participated in the research and consultation work.

TGP is grand in magnitude and complicated in technology. The design for the main structures of the project is classified into five stages, i.e., feasibility study, preliminary design, technical design for key individual items, bidding documents and detailed drawings. The design for the main structures of the project is undertaken by Changjiang Water Resources Commission (CWRC).

The feasibility study report was completed by CWRC at the end of 1989. An overall examination had been organized by Three Gorges Project Examination Committee of the State Council. In Apri l 1992, the Fifth Session of the 7th National People's Congress passed the resolution on the construction of the Three Gorges Project. In December of the same year, the ¡癙 reliminary Design Report of Three Gorges Project on the Yangtze River¡± was completed by CWRC and formally approved in July 1993 after an examination organized by the Three Gorges Project Construction Committee

(TGPCC) of the State Council.The technical design for the key specific items consists of Such eight parts as the dam, powerhouses, permanent shiplock, vertical shiplift, 2nd stage upstream cofferdam, mechanical and electrical equipment &. facilities, project safety monitoring, habours/piers and navigation channel regulation in the fluctuating backwater region (including effect of the degradation of the river bed downstream and the countermeasures thereto). The technical designs with an exception of the last part had been completed by May of 1995. The examination of the design for each individual item, presided over by China Yangtze

Three Gorges Project Development Corporation (CTGPC) by inviting 157 famous experts who were divided into eight panels, has been conducted respectively and basically finished by the end of 1995. The preparation of the bidding documents and the detailed drawings have already been unfolded gradually. By the end of 1996, there are in total 84 major bidding items completed and 8, 803 detailed drawings Submitted.

2 Recent Progress of the Project Construction

On April 3 of 1992, the fifth session of 7th National People's Congress passed the "Resolution on the Construction of the Three Gorges Project", which marked the end of the 40-plus-year verification phase and the start of the performance phase. With the first batch of construction teams entering into the construction site in the early 1993, the construction preparatory works and the stage I diversion works started. On Dec' 14, 1994, Premier LiPeng declared the formal start of TGP's construction at the dam site. In the past four years, funds needed have well been put into place and the project construction has progressed smoothly. The project construction has been carried out based on the approved master schedule and a little bit ahead of time. The investment for the project has so far been controlled within the approved budgets and the construction quality satisfied the design requirements' There are ten plus contractors, well -known and powerful at home, entering into the construction site by contracts through bidding. The total number of labour force in the construction area are approximately 20,000.347 supervising engineers of 9 organizations undertaking Supervision works are working for the project.

By the end of 1996, 19.15 billion Yuan of investment for TGP has been completed. The main civil works quantities accomplished are: earth-rock excavation 129.7 million m3 (of which the main works 77.91 million m3),

earth-rock fill 48.78 million m3(of which the main works 11.15 million m3); concrete placing 3,441.1 thousand m3(of which the main works 2, 274.7 thousand m3). See the following table.

By the end of 1996, the current status of TGP's construction is as follows:

•Land requisition in dam area

The construction area for the project structures is 15.28 km2. The land requisition and resettlement in this area have been basically finished and an enclosed management carried Out.

Internal and external transportation

The highway from Yichang City to the dam site and the Xiling Bridge across the Yangtze River have been open to traffic in the fourth quarter of 1996. The dam site docks and the internal main road system have basically been finished.

•Water &. Power supply, communication and construction camps

These began to take shape and can satisfy the needs for Stage I construction.

•Aggregates processing and concrete batching plant system

A comprehensive production capacity of monthly concrete placement of 250,000 m3 has been Formed.

•1st Stage diversion works

Stage I earth and rock fill cofferdam has been successfully built which had stood the test of three flood seasons. The excavation for the open diversion channel has been basically completed. The 2nd Stage longitudinal concrete cofferdam began its concrete placement 10 months ahead of schedule and completed in April 1997. The 1st stage cofferdam began demolition from Oct. 1996.