China's Premier Li Qiang announced construction had begun on what will be the world's largest hydropower dam, located on the eastern rim of the Tibetan Plateau and estimated to cost around $170 billion, the official Xinhua news agency said.
The dam is China's most ambitious hydropower project since the Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze, with operations expected sometime in the 2030s.
Made up of five cascade hydropower stations, the dam will be located in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo. A section of the river falls a dramatic 2,000 metres (6,561 feet) within a short span of 50 km (31 miles), offering huge hydropower potential.
India and Bangladesh have already raised concerns about its possible impact on the millions of people who live downstream, while NGOs have warned of the risk to the environment, one of the richest and most diverse on the plateau.
Beijing has said the dam, with the capacity to produce 300 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, will help meet power demand in Tibet and the rest of China without having a major effect on downstream water supplies or the environment.
China's CSI Construction & Engineering Index jumped as much as 4% to a seven-month high. Power Construction Corporation of China and Arcplus Group PLC jumped by their 10% daily limit.
Wang Zhuo, partner of Shanghai Zhuozhu Investment Management, said the project offered investors both long-term investment opportunities and a theme for short-term speculation.
"From an investment perspective, mature hydropower projects offer bond-like dividends," Wang said.
But he cautioned that speculative buying into related stocks triggered by the announcement would inflate valuations.
The project will drive demand for construction and building materials such as cement and civil explosives, benefiting related companies, Huatai Securities said in a note to clients.
Shares of Beijing-listed Hunan Wuxin Tunnel Intelligent Equipment Co, which sells tunnel construction equipment, surged 30%. So did shares of Geokang Technologies Co Ltd, which produces intelligent monitoring terminals.
Wang Zhuo, partner of Shanghai Zhuozhu Investment Management, said the project offered investors both long-term investment opportunities and a theme for short-term speculation.
"From an investment perspective, mature hydropower projects offer bond-like dividends," Wang said.
But he cautioned that speculative buying into related stocks triggered by the announcement would inflate valuations.
The project will drive demand for construction and building materials such as cement and civil explosives, benefiting related companies, Huatai Securities said in a note to clients.
Shares of Beijing-listed Hunan Wuxin Tunnel Intelligent Equipment Co, which sells tunnel construction equipment, surged 30%. So did shares of Geokang Technologies Co Ltd, which produces intelligent monitoring terminals.
The Yarlung Zangbo becomes the Brahmaputra River as it leaves Tibet and flows south into India's states of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam and finally into Bangladesh.
China has already started hydropower generation on the upper reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo, which flows from the west to the east of Tibet.
(Reuters, July 21, 2025)
