The Gongboxia Hydropower Station on the upper reaches of the Yellow River in northwest China's Qinghai Province began to store water on Sunday.
  
After three years of construction, the power project, a major part of China's West-to-East Power Transmission Project, will have a reservoir capable of storing 620 million cubic meters of water.
  
With an investment of 6.6 billion yuan (US$795 million), the power station will have installed capacity of 1.5 million kw.
  
The first generating unit of the hydropower station is expected to produce electricity at the end of August, said Xia Zhong, general manager of the Upper Reaches Yellow River Hydropower Development Co. Ltd.
  
The electricity produced by the station will help meet the increasing power demand in the northwest China and help promote the West-to-East Power Transmission Project, Xia said. 

(Xinhua News Agency August 9, 2004)