New Turbines Starts Ahead Of Schedule

Beijing -- The reservoir for the world's largest hydro-electric power plant on the Yangtze river has filled up to a level which will allow the first two turbines to begin test runs, five days ahead of schedule, reported the official press agency Xinhua recently.

The water level of the Three Gorges Dam reached 135 metres above sea level on Tuesday. Since June 1 more than 10 billion cubic metres of water has accumulated in the reservoir.

Ships can begin navigation on the longest river in China again on June 16. The project, with a planned completion date of 2009, is in the conclusion phase nine years after beginning construction.

The water reservoir forms a 660 kilometre long artificial lake between Sandouping in the province Hubei and the metropolis Chongqing. More than 720,000 people had to leave their traditional homeland with 400,000 still awaiting to be resettled.

The more than 25 billion dollar project came under international criticism because of resettlement issues, high costs, feared environmental damage and water pollution as well as a possible silting of the reservoir.

The two turbines are to regularly produce energy by August, when two more turbines are scheduled to start to produce 5.5 million kilowatts by October.

Deutsche Presse-Agentur