With a controlled drainage area of 1 million km2, Gezhouba Hydropower Station is situated in Yichang, Hubei Province. It is the first large-scale hydropower station in the Yangtze River, and also the largest low-head, large-flow and run of the river hydropower station in the world. The design and construction of Gezhouba Hydropower Station was a milestone in the history of hydropower development in China because it was a first-ever dam project on the mainstream of the Yangtze River. The project was kicked off in May 1971 and fully commissioned in December 1988.
Gezhouba Hydropower Station is mainly composed of a dam, ship locks, power plants, sluice gates, sand flushing gates, etc. As a gate dam, it is 2595 m long and 47 m high. The total storage capacity of its reservoir stands at 1.58 billion m3. The power station possesses 21 power units with a total installed capacity of 2.777 million KW and an average annual power generation of 15.7 billion kWh. It plays a pivotal role in improving the energy structure in Central China, mitigating the pressure on coal and oil supply, and stepping up the safe operation of power grids in Central and East China. Aside from power generation, it also boasts of reverse regulation, navigation improvement and other comprehensive benefits. Its reservoir has a reverse regulation storage capacity of 85 million m3, serving the function of reverse regulation in the uneven discharge of the Three Gorges project during the flood season.
In sum, Gezhouba Hydropower Station has not only yielded enormous economic and social benefits, but also advanced the scientific and technological expertise, cultivated cutting-edge design, construction and scientific research talents and contributed valuable experience in the sphere of hydropower development in China.