The third power generator of China's Three Gorges Project began
operation after it was connected to the power grid Monday
morning.
Zhang Cheng, director of the Three Gorges Hydraulic Power
Station, said the generator, known as the No.3 generating unit and
built by the multinational consortium VGS, has a generating
capacity of 700,000 kw. It was put into trial operation on Aug.
2.?
The first two 700,000-kw generators in service at the hydropower
station began commercial operation in July this year.
By Monday, the hydropower station had generated 1.1 billion kwh
of electricity, said Zhang.
According to Yang Qing, deputy general manager of the China
Yangtze River Three Gorges Project Development Corporation, four
generators -- and possibly six if everything goes well -- will be
operational this year.
Launched in 1993 and expected to be completed in 2009, the Three
Gorges Project has begun to pay dividends recently, playing an
important role in flood control, power generation, navigation,
water diversion and environmental protection.
(Xinhua News Agency August 18, 2003)