China’s Yangtze River clean energy corridor—the largest of its kind in the world—generated a record-breaking 57.68 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 9.4% year-on-year increase, according to China Three Gorges Corporation.
Source: China News Service
China’s Yangtze River clean energy corridor—the largest of its kind in the world—generated a record-breaking 57.68 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 9.4% year-on-year increase, according to China Three Gorges Corporation.
Stretching across six major hydropower plants—Wudongde, Baihetan, Xiluodu, Xiangjiaba, Three Gorges, and Gezhouba—the corridor reached full operational capacity in December 2022. With a total installed capacity of 71.7 gigawatts, it plays a critical role in both clean energy supply and water resource management along the Yangtze.
In the first three months of this year, China Yangtze Power coordinated maintenance schedules, reservoir management, shipping water support, and energy dispatch to ensure stable and efficient operation. Early March saw a significant efficiency boost across 110 generating units, with daily electricity output during key periods up 20% from the five-year seasonal average.
The corridor also contributed over 14.6 billion cubic meters of water downstream between December 2024 and March 2025—easing water shortages, improving navigation depth, and supporting agriculture and daily life in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze.
Beyond power and water supply, the corridor advanced ecological flow management. Three ecological base-load operation trials have already been conducted at the Wudongde and Baihetan stations, while multi-level water intake tests are underway to better support fish spawning and aquatic ecosystems.
Experts say the Yangtze corridor not only delivers clean energy at scale but also serves as a model for integrating hydropower development with ecological protection—demonstrating China’s efforts to balance energy security with sustainability.
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