China's Three Gorges Dam: World's Largest Hydroelectric Power Plant

China's Three Gorges Dam: World's Largest Hydroelectric Power Plant

In 2018, a single-power plant produced more energy than the world's largest coal-powered and gas-powered plants combined. This massive power plant relies on a time-tested source of renewable energy - running water. China's Three Gorges Dam, spanning over 2.3 kilometers, isn't just the world's largest hydroelectric plant. It's capable of producing more energy than any other power plant on Earth.

Key Takeaways

• The Three Gorges Dam is the world's largest hydroelectric power plant, producing more energy than all other power plants combined.
• Hydroelectric dams work by redirecting river flow through penstocks to spin turbines and generate electricity.
• The dam's construction displaced 1.4 million people and flooded over 600 square kilometers of land.

Rushing water flows through the penstock and turns the blades of a turbine, which is attached to a generator in an adjacent power station. The turning of the blades spins coils of wire inside a magnetic field, producing a steady supply of electricity. Because the penstocks can be sealed at any time, a dam can hold back excess water during stormy seasons and save it for dry ones. This allows hydroelectric dams to produce power regardless of the weather, while simultaneously preventing floods further downstream.

These benefits have long appealed to China's Hubei province. Located near the basin of the Yangtze River, this region is prone to deadly floods during rainy seasons when the Yangtze's flow is strongest. Plans to build a dam that would transform this volatile waterway into a stable source

of power circulated throughout the 20th century. When construction finally began in 1994, the plans were epic. The dam would contain 32 turbines. 12 more than the previous record holder, South America's Etypoo Dam. The turbines would supply energy to two separate power stations, each connecting to a series of cables spanning hundreds of kilometers. Only from three gorges would reach power grids as far away as Shanghai.

However, the human costs of this ambition were steep. To create the dam's reservoir, workers needed to flood over 600 square kilometers of land upstream. This area included 13 cities, hundreds of villages, and over 1000 historical and archeological sites. The construction displaced roughly 1.4 million people and the government's relocation programs

were widely considered insufficient. Many argued against this controversial construction, but others estimated that the lives saved by the dam's flood protection would outweigh the trauma of displacement. Furthermore, raising the water level upstream would improve the river's navigability, increase shipping capacity, and transform the region into a collection of prosperous port towns.

When the project was completed in 2012, China became the world's largest producer of electricity. In 2018, the dam generated 101.6 billion kilowatt hours. That's enough electricity to power nearly 2% of China for one year or to power New York City for almost two years. This is a truly astonishing amount of energy, and yet two years earlier, another dam less

than half the size actually generated more electricity. Despite three gorgeous record-setting scale, the etypoo dam still produced more power. To understand why etypoo can outperform three gorgeous, we need to look at the two factors that determine a dam's energy output. The first is the number of turbines. Three gorgeous has the world's highest installed turbine capacity, meaning it's theoretically capable of producing over 50% more power than etypoo. But the second factor is the force and frequency of water moving through those turbines. Three gorgeous spans several deep narrow ravines, surging with powerful water. However, the young sea's seasonal changes keep the dam from reaching its theoretical maximum output. The etypoo dam, on the other hand, is located atop what was previously the planet's largest

waterfall by volume. Although the dam's construction destroyed this natural wonder, the constant flow of water all