There is a colossal hydroelectric power plant at an altitude of 3,000 meters. It produces 11 billion kWh and is as big as the Eiffel Tower. If you were surprised by the Salamanca hydroelectric plant, this one will leave you speechless. It is worth mentioning the concept of hydroelectric power plants, which are infrastructures in which hydraulic energy is used to produce large amounts of electrical energy.
The design and distribution of its components allows to take advantage of the force that impacts a stream of water on a turbine making it rotate at high speed. This spinning motion is transmitted through mechanisms to be harnessed by an electrical producer to generate electrical energy.
The use of a hydroelectric power plant is one of the most widely used ways to obtain electrical energy, given that the amount of energy is high compared to other systems. In addition, a renewable resource such as water is used for this purpose.
China unveils a colossal hydroelectric power station: it increases the length of the days
China makes history and unveils the Lianghekou mega hydroelectric power plant. It is almost the size of the Eiffel Tower and the highest in the country. It is a gigantic construction that boasts an average altitude of 3,000 meters, putting it above all other power plants in China. It is located on the Yalong River in Garzê, in the southwest of the country. Moreover, its total planned installed capacity is three million kW.
This instruction started almost ten years ago, in October 2014, and those in charge of it finished it only in 2023. Going by the numbers, the approved investment is around 66.5 billion yuan, equivalent to 9.449 billion euros. The design of the reservoir allows it to reach almost 11 billion cubic meters (m3), specifically 10,800.
The annual energy production volume is also estimated to exceed 11 billion kWh. The first unit of the hydropower plant was commissioned in September 2021.
China’s hydropower plant sets a precedent: hydroelectric production to be boosted
As reported by Yalong River Hydropower Development Company Ltd (YLHDC), at the highest point, the breakwater dam rises 295 meters, bringing it to the very level of the Eiffel Tower (which stands at about 300 m excluding the antenna). The hydroelectric power plant integrates, among other things, spillways, a ventilation tunnel and a subway power plant.
The state news agency Xinhua reports that the hydropower plant will be a turning point in the supply of Sichuan and the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle.
In turn, the state agency released images and videos showing the hydropower plant outdoors and indoors, including the rooms where operators work, the six power production units and monitoring equipment. The plant is located about 25 kilometers upstream from Yajiang County in Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.
Making the sum total we arrive at 1.57 kilometers long. Its water intake tower is 115 meters high, 160 meters wide and 33 meters long. Its high altitude makes it possible to enjoy an average altitude of 3,000 meters, the highest in the country for an infrastructure of these characteristics and, according to Global Times, the second highest in the world.
The Lianghekou hydropower plant is one of the 22-level plants that will work on the mainstream of the Yalong, with the approval of the authorities in 2014. This is not the only project that has China at center stage. Another colossal project involving the Asian country is this photovoltaic panda bear.
