en.Wedoany.com Reported - As China's first major national landmark project to commence under the "15th Five-Year Plan," the construction preparation test project (pioneer excavation zone) for the new Three Gorges waterway has fully completed topsoil stripping. Located in Chenjiachong Village, Letianxi Town, Yiling District, Yichang City, Hubei Province, this pioneer excavation zone serves as the "vanguard project" for the new Three Gorges navigation channel and is expected to complete all excavation tasks by October 2026.
The pioneer excavation zone project encompasses six core components, including the excavation of the approach channel test section, slope support, and drainage, fulfilling dual missions of engineering implementation and technical experimentation. The project requires a total of approximately 8.55 million cubic meters of earth and rock excavation, about 2.03 million cubic meters of earth and rock filling, and roughly 80,000 cubic meters of concrete pouring. To date, the project team has completed approximately 4.15 million cubic meters of earth and rock excavation, accounting for 48% of the total excavation volume, with overall construction progress meeting expectations. Currently, key processes such as earth excavation, rock blasting, and support operations in the approach channel test section are progressing steadily at the construction site.
The total investment for the Yangtze River Three Gorges waterway new channel project is approximately 77.208 billion yuan, consisting of two parts: the new Three Gorges navigation channel and the Gezhouba navigation capacity expansion. The new Three Gorges navigation channel plans to construct a new double-line, continuous five-stage ship lock, with a route length of about 6,680 meters; the Gezhouba navigation capacity expansion involves demolishing the existing No. 3 ship lock and constructing two new single-stage ship locks. The project is designed to accommodate 10,000-ton-class vessels, and upon completion, the total throughput capacity of the Three Gorges hub will reach 336 million tons. After the completion of the approach channel test section in the pioneer excavation zone, it will provide a corridor for the relocation of some 500 kV and 220 kV overhead transmission lines within the scope of the subsequent main project.
The pioneer excavation zone also serves as an "experimental field" for new technologies and equipment. According to Yang Ning, Deputy General Manager and Chief Engineer of the Three Gorges Waterway New Channel (Hubei) Company, approximately 10% to 20% of the vehicles currently deployed are new energy vehicles, and their efficiency and energy consumption data will provide a reference for the large-scale use of new energy equipment in subsequent projects.
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