Published : 2025-05-20
On May 20, 2006, the main construction of China's Three Gorges Dam project was completed.
That afternoon, the last batch of concrete for the Three Gorges Dam was poured, which marked the completion of the core structure of the Three Gorges Dam project. A simple celebration ceremony was held on site.
Compared to the initial design plan, the dam was completed nearly 10 months ahead of schedule.
Relevant experts explained that the early completion was not a result of rushing, but rather the outcome of summarising past experiences and achieving innovative breakthroughs.
Xie Xiufa (謝修發), a senior engineer from the Three Gorges Representative Bureau of the Yangtze River Water Resources Commission who participated in the entire design process of the project, also stated that there were many reasons for the early completion, including the fact that there were no major quality incidents that delayed the construction progress.
In addition, good financial conditions were also a strong guarantee for the construction progress. As of the end of April 2006, the Three Gorges Dam project had completed an investment of approximately 126 billion RMB.
It is worth mentioning that holding a grand celebration when the dam reaches its final height has always been a common practice in the global hydropower industry. The original plan by the Three Gorges Corporation was also to spend millions of RMB to hold large-scale celebrations.
In the end, this plan was abandoned, and instead, a simple ceremony lasting about 20 minutes was held on the top of the dam, with participants mainly being representatives from construction units and various experts.
Including fireworks, banners, and flags, the total cost was only a few hundred RMB.
The Three Gorges Dam is located in Sandouping Town, Yichang City, Hubei Province, with a total length of 2,309 metres and a total concrete pouring volume of 16.1 million cubic metres, making it the largest reinforced concrete dam in the world.
Concrete pouring on the left bank of the Three Gorges Dam began in late 1998 and was completed in October 2002. The right bank, spanning over 660 metres, started concrete pouring in July 2003.
The Three Gorges Dam was originally scheduled to reach its designed elevation along the entire structure by early 2007.
