The first generator unit of the Suwalong Hydropower Station of China Huadian Corporation Ltd. (CHD) on the upper reaches of the Jinsha River in Southwest China was put into operation on July 19.
It was the first power station of the clean energy base in that area to break ground and an early project to serve China's west-east power transmission program.
Located on the trunk stream of the Jinsha River on the border of Batang County in Sichuan Province and Markam County in the Tibet Autonomous Region, the Suwalong Hydropower Station has a total installed capacity of 1.2 million kilowatts and an overall annual power generation capacity of about 5.5 billion kilowatt-hours.
It was approved by the National Development and Reform Commission in November 2015 and is expected to contribute to the country's "dual carbon" goals of peaking carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.
Operation of the first generator unit marked practical progress in CHD's construction of a new-type power system and its building of a national large-scale wind, solar and hydropower demonstration base on the upper reaches of the Jinsha River in Sichuan and Tibet.
A view of the central control room of the Suwalong Hydropower Station over the upper reaches of the Jinsha River [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
The station is designed with four generator units and the other three are now going through electromechanical device installation and adjustment work before becoming operable.
The station is expected to help reduce consumption of about 1.8 million metric tons of standard coal, eliminating 4.3 million tons of carbon dioxide annually.
A view of the dam of the Suwalong Hydropower Station [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
The Suwalong Hydropower Station is 800 kilometers from Chengdu, capital of Sichuan, and 1,300 kilometers from Lhasa, capital of Tibet, and was difficult to build because of the complicated geological conditions.
To improve engineering accuracy and ensure construction quality, smart construction technology was adopted.
The real-time movement and speed as well as the vibration state of each rolling machine can be seen on a screen based on a control system.
What's more, precise instruments to measure surface deformation etc. have been installed to help management personnel learn about real-time performance of the dam when it starts operation.
A view inside a workshop of the Suwalong Hydropower Station [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
Environmental protection has been a highlight during construction of the Suwalong Hydropower Station.
For example, the fish enhancement and releasing station at the Suwalong Hydropower Station is the largest of its kind over the upper reaches of the Jinsha River and obtained investment of more than 100 million yuan ($14.8 million).
The releasing station covers an area of more than 60 mu (about 4 hectares) and about 1.97 million fish have been released from the station since 2018.
It's worth noting that CHD helped improve local people's living and production conditions during construction of the Suwalong Hydropower Station.
CHD has renovated and built highways and bridges, power transmission lines and communication base stations, and carried out water supply projects, improving travel experience, medical care conditions and education in affected areas.
Local people have also gained more income as they were recruited to work for the project.
One of the nine clean energy bases during the nation's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, the clean energy base over the upper reaches of the Jinsha River includes the Sichuan-Tibet cascade hydropower stations, supporting photovoltaic power stations, pumped storage power stations and power transmission lines. The base has a designed installed capacity of nearly 60 million kilowatts.
(Executive editor: Wang Ruoting)
