The main section of 289m high dam which forms an integral part of the 16GW Baihetan hydropower project in China has been completed, China Three Gorges Corporation has announced.

Work on the structure involved more than eight million cubic meters of specially designed cement concrete that was poured over 50 months. 

The Baihetan hydropower project is designed to have 16 domestically-manufactured generating units each with a 1GW capacity. It will be the second largest hydropower station after the Three Gorges project in terms of total installed capacity once complete.

The first batch of its generating units are expected to go into operation in July this year, with the project scheduled for full operation in mid 2022.