Damming of Diversion Channel in Three Gorges to Start on Nov. 6

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, October 31, 2002

Damming of Diversion Channel in Three Gorges to Start on Nov. 6

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Three Gorges Project

The Damming of the open diversion channel in the Three Gorges Project will be implemented on November 6, the Three Gorges Development Corporation announced at a news briefing held at the construction site at 4:00 pm, October 30.

A few days earlier, the pivotal project acceptance group of the Yangtze Three Gorges Second-phase Project Acceptance Committee under the State Council announced that conditions for damming the diversion channel were available, approving that the damming of the diversion channel be implemented in November, said Li Yong'an, Party secretary and deputy general-manager of the Corporation.

In the morning of October 29, Premier Zhu Rongji chaired the 11th session of the State Council's committee for the Three Gorges Project construction, which approved the proposal made by the Acceptance Committee and finalized November 6 as the damming date..

Now the "long kou or dragon mouth" of both upstream and downstream cofferdams have been formed, with their respective widths being 127.6 and 105 meters, according to Peng Qiyou, general director of the project. The width at the closure point will be shortened to 30 meters by 8:00 am, November 4, to prepare for the final damming in the morning of November 6.

The damming of the channel will pave way for the third-phase construction of the huge hydroelectric dam, 2,309 meters long and 185 meters high.

Following the canal damming, water will be discharged mainly from 22 diversion holes on the lower part of the main dam, each six meters wide by 8.5 meters high.

The first two phases of the Three Gorges Project were concentrated chiefly along the northern bank. The mainstream of the Yangtze, China's longest river, was first dammed in November 1997.

The construction of the Three Gorges Project, which began in 1993, is expected to be completed in 2009, when 26 power generating units with a combined capacity of 18.2 million kilowatts will go into operation. The permanent locks will also be able to accommodate ships of more than 10,000 DWT (dead weight tonnage).

The first group of four power-generating units will begin operation next year.

By PD Online Staff Li Heng

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