On October 23, 2020, China South-to-North Water Diversion Corporation Limited was established in Beijing.
From 2021 to 2024, the company's operating revenue increased by 24 percent. All indicators have improved significantly since its establishment. The qualitative goals of the 14th Five-Year Plan have been largely achieved, with benefits and efficiency gradually improving, and layout and structure optimized.
As of now, the first phase of the eastern and middle routes of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project has delivered over 83 billion cubic meters of water to northern China. This has benefited 195 million people in 48 large and medium-sized cities along the routes, strongly supporting GDP growth of over 16 trillion yuan in northern China, promoting industrial layout optimization and economic structure upgrades and laying a solid foundation for realizing common prosperity.
Comprehensive support capabilities enhanced
China South-to-North Water Diversion Corporation Limited has conducted safety risk assessments on the eastern and middle routes of the project, strengthened flood control capacity and optimized safety monitoring system and emergency management system, thus steadily enhancing its comprehensive support capabilities.
The company has implemented an innovative management model integrating smart inspection and manual patrols. At the Huinanzhuang Management Office in Beijing, hexapod robotic dogs have been deployed for autonomous inspection, marking a new breakthrough in intelligent operation and maintenance. The Eastern Route Corporation Limited has established a regular communication mechanism with local flood control authorities along the eastern route.
As of June 2025, the North Extension Emergency Water Supply Project of the eastern route has increased water supply by 818 million cubic meters. During the ice periods of 2023-2024 and 2024-2025, the middle route project supplied nearly 400 million cubic meters of water beyond its scheduled supply. Using a scientific water dispatch mechanism, the company has exceeded its water diversion targets for four consecutive years. The water quality of the middle route consistently meets or exceeds the Grade Ⅱ surface water standard, while the eastern route meets the Grade Ⅲ surface water standard.
The South-to-North Water Diversion Project has delivered over 11.8 billion cubic meters of water for ecological compensation to more than 50 rivers in northern China, promoting ecological recovery and groundwater management.
Recently, the middle route project was selected as one of the 2025 Top 10 Global Engineering Achievements, providing a replicable solution for global water resource allocation and ecological optimization.
Orderly project construction advanced
In July 2022, construction began on the Yangtze River-Hanjiang River Water Diversion Project, a key landmark project for advancing high-quality development of follow-up projects and accelerating the national water network framework.
Currently, the excavation length of the main tunnels exceeds 12 kilometers, and branch tunnels exceed 30 kilometers. Among the ten tunnel boring machines (TBMs) in the cluster, eight have rolled off the production line and seven have started working, driving a large-scale construction momentum of TBM cluster tunneling and advancing the project at full speed.
The Guxian Water Conservancy Project on the Yellow River, the Kaihua Reservoir Project in Zhejiang Province, and the Guanyinsi Regulating Project in Henan Province are progressing orderly.
Improved industrial layout
Beyond water supply revenue from the first phase of the eastern and middle routes, a diversified revenue structure encompassing water network operation, clean energy, ecological conservation, smart water network and design consulting is taking shape at an accelerated pace. The share of such diversified revenue in total operating income has surged from less than 2.8 percent in 2021 to 20.1 percent in 2024, indicating a steadily refined industrial layout and optimized revenue mix.
China South-to-North Water Diversion Corporation Limited is committed to high-quality construction and management of the first phase of the eastern and middle routes and is advancing follow-up projects such as the Yangtze River-Hanjiang River Water Diversion Project. Meanwhile, the first phase of the Qaidam Water Resources Allocation Project has been successfully launched, and 18 water supply plants and six sewage treatment plants in Zunyi, Guizhou Province have been acquired.
The company is pioneering a development model that integrates water network infrastructure with clean energy projects. This strategy is being advanced through the promotion of pumped storage projects in Yunyang (Chongqing), Yanling (Hunan), and Helong (Jilin), alongside the distributed photovoltaic projects in Huinanzhuang, Beijumahe, and Shibalihe. Furthermore, China South-to-North Water Diversion Corporation Limited has secured a development quota for high-quality wind power projects with a total capacity of one million kilowatts in Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.
This year marks the conclusion of the 14th Five-Year Plan. Over the past five years, the company has facilitated sound operation and sustainable development of its projects, promoting the integration of economic, social, ecological and security benefits delivered by the water network.
(Executive editor: Yuan Ting)
