Zhang Yanbin, an expert with the project, said power generation would begin on schedule after Chinese and foreign technical workers had ironed out equipment problems at workshops downstream on the north bank.

Zhang said that among the 26 power-generating units planned for the Three Gorges project, the No. 2 and No. 5 units would be put into operation in August, and the No. 3 and No. 6 would start in October.

Under the operating schedule, the four generators, each with an installed capacity of 700,000 kilowatts, will generate a total of 5.5 billion kilowatt hours of electricity this year.

The construction of the mammoth dam project, which began in 1993, is due to be completed in 2009, when its 26 power-generating units with a combined capacity of 18.2 million kilowatts will be operational.

It will be able to generate an average of 84.7 billion kilowatts hours of electricity annually on completion.

(Xinhua News Agency June 7, 2003)