Recently, China Yangtze Power Co., Ltd. (Yangtze Power), a subsidiary of China Three Gorges Corporation, announced that the world's largest clean energy corridor generated over 276TWhof electricity in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 5.34%. This is equivalent to saving approximately 83 million tons of standard coal and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by over 200 million tons, which can meet the annual electricity needs of more than 290 million people, surpassing Hubei Province's total electricity consumption in 2023 (270.64TWh).

Diagram of the world's largest clean energy corridor. Design: Luo Lu

2023 marked the first full year that the world's largest clean energy corridor was fully operational and demonstrating its comprehensive benefits. With the guidance and support of theChangjiangCommission of the Ministry of Water Resources, State Grid Corporation, and China Southern Power Grid, Yangtze Power strengthened hydrometeorological forecasting, increased the frequency of scheduling consultations, carefully prepared scheduling plans, and enhanced inspections and maintenance of unit equipment and facilities, fully safeguarding the major national asset. Through implementing joint optimized scheduling throughout the year, the cascade power stations increased power generation by over 12TWhthrough water-saving measures, successfully completing multiple rounds of power supply tasks for events such as the National People's Congress, the Chengdu Universiade, and the Hangzhou Asian Games. This contributed significantly to the comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development. For the first time, all cascade reservoirs were fully filled on schedule, with a total water storage of nearly 24.2 billion cubic meters, providing solid support for the water and electricity needs of people in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River during the dry season.

Yangtze Power's Three Gorges cascade scheduling holds a special meeting on power supply for the Asian Games. Photo by Mao Xiangchun

It is reported that the world's largest clean energy corridor is composed of six cascade power stations on the main stream of the Yangtze River: Wudongde, Baihetan, Xiluodu, Xiangjiaba, Three Gorges, and Gezhouba, equipped with a total of 110 hydro-generator units with a total installed capacity of 71.695GW, equivalent to the installed capacity of "tripleThree Gorges". In addition to power supply, this corridor has also created deep reservoir channels, helping the Yangtze River's "golden waterway" to realize "golden benefits".