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Xiluodu Hydropower Station

Xiluodu Hydropower Station
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  • Xiluodu Hydropower Station

Xiluodu Hydropower Station

Xiluodu Hydropower Station is a key project in the national "West-to-East Power Transmission" program, located on the Jinsha River where Sichuan and Yunnan provinces meet. The project primarily focuses on power generation, but also offers comprehensive benefits including flood control, sediment control, and improved downstream navigation conditions. It also provides cascading compensation for downstream power stations. The power station mainly supplies electricity to East and Central China, while also meeting the electricity needs of Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. It is one of the closest key power sources to the "West-to-East Power Transmission" project on the Jinsha River, and the largest hydropower station on the river.

Its installed capacity is comparable to that of the former world's second-largest hydropower station, the Itaipu Dam (14 million kilowatts), making it the second-largest in China and the third-largest in the world. Construction began at the end of 2005, with the river being successfully diverted in 2007. In March 2009, the main concrete pouring for the dam began, with the first units planned to generate electricity in 2013. The station has an underground powerhouse on both the left and right banks, each installing 9 giant hydropower generating units with a single unit capacity of 770,000 kilowatts, with a total installed capacity of 13.86 million kilowatts, second only to the Three Gorges Dam and the Itaipu Dam.

As of April 2014, Unit 3 of the Xiluodu left bank power station completed its trial run and scheduled maintenance, and was officially put into operation. The remaining 4 units are undergoing installation and commissioning and are scheduled to be put into operation before the 2014 flood season.

At 9:50 pm on June 30, 2014, Unit 1 of the Xiluodu left bank power station completed its 72-hour trial run and entered into operation. At this point, all units of the Xiluodu Hydropower Station were put into operation.