The China Yangtze Three Gorges Project Development Corporation (CTGPC) has signed a with Citic Securities Company, an affiliate of the China International Trust and Investment Corporation (Citic), which will underwrite the bonds.

Lin Chuxue, deputy manager of CTGPC, said this is the single largest bond issue on the domestic capital market in light of the funds it will raise and also the longest in term at 20 years.

This year is a pivotal year for the Three Gorges project, which started in 1993, as it is expected to reach next year's three scheduled goals -- water storage, navigation and power generation.

By the end of June, the construction investment had reached 80.56 billion yuan (US$9.7 billion), and the total cost is expected to hit 180 billion yuan (US$21.7 billion) on completion in 2009.

The project consists of a 2,309-meter-long by 185-meter-high dam and 26 generating units with a combined capacity of 18.2 million kilowatts.

Upon completion, the project will be able to generate 84.7 billion kilowatts of electricity annually. Its permanent locks will allow ships of more than 10,000 DWT (dead weight tonnage) to pass.

(Xinhua News Agency September 20, 2002)