Amid Dalai Lama’s succession buzz, China unveils plans to install world’s largest impulse turbine in Tibet

According to China Datang Corporation, which is overseeing the project, the station will have a total installed capacity of 1 million kilowatts and is projected to produce nearly 4 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity each year.

Amid the raging debate over the Dalai Lama’s succession plan, China has unveiled plans to install a powerful impulse turbine at the Datang Zala Hydropower Station in Tibet’s autonomous region, according to a report by the official Science and Technology Daily.

The domestically developed turbine boasts a maximum output of 500 megawatts, making it the largest of its kind globally in terms of single-unit capacity. Two such turbines will be fitted at the facility.

The 80-tonne turbine, manufactured by Harbin Electric Machinery Company in northeast China, departed the factory on Wednesday after undergoing four years of design and testing. The Datang Zala station is located on the Yuqu River, a tributary of the Nu River, which flows through Yunnan province into eastern Myanmar and eventually reaches the Andaman Sea.

Constructed from martensitic steel—a stainless steel known for its strength, durability, and resistance to corrosion—the turbine features 21 water buckets and spans an outer diameter of 6.23 meters (around 20 feet). The publication referred to it as the "heart" of the hydropower unit.

“The turbine’s bucket-type wheel is its core component, essential in converting the kinetic energy of flowing water into mechanical energy,” Science and Technology Daily reported. In a January article, the outlet noted that the advanced turbine design is expected to significantly enhance power generation efficiency at the station, which has a vertical drop of 671 meters between the reservoir surface and the turbine.

“Impulse turbines work by channeling water through a pressure pipe to strike the bucket-type wheel, facilitating energy conversion,” it explained. “This wheel is a crucial component, bearing heavy loads and regulating water flow. During operation, it must withstand continuous high-frequency dynamic pressure, ensuring the unit runs safely and steadily.”

Tao Xingming, chief technology officer at Harbin Electric Machinery Company, said the new turbine could increase efficiency from 91% to 92.6%. “For a 500-megawatt unit running continuously, that 1.6% boost translates to an extra 190,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity generated daily,” Tao told the newspaper.

According to China Datang Corporation, which is overseeing the project, the station will have a total installed capacity of 1 million kilowatts and is projected to produce nearly 4 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity each year. This output is equivalent to burning 1.3 million tonnes of standard coal annually, helping to cut carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 3.4 million tonnes.

The project remains on track for timely commissioning, as noted in an April update from the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council. Construction of the main facility began in 2023, and according to state news agency Xinhua, the plant is scheduled to start operations in 2028.

This initiative forms part of China’s broader push to expand its dam-building efforts and transition to cleaner energy sources, as the country aims for carbon neutrality by 2060.