China to bust Yangtze River chokepoint with US$11 billion ‘water staircase’ project

Eyeing massive new shipping facilities near the Three Gorges dam, China has formally begun construction on an ambitious project to enable the passage of larger vessels and streamline logistics along the nation’s most critical waterway.The centrepiece of the planned 77.2 billion yuan (US$11.4 billion) infrastructure buildout, which looks to span nearly a decade, is a series of mega ship locks – colossal structures also known as “water elevators” or “water staircases” that are built into a dam.After several years of feasibility studies and design work, the signature project was included in China’s 15th five-year plan (2026-2030) and looks to be a cornerstone of Beijing’s strategy to transform Asia’s longest waterway – the Yangtze River, which the Three Gorges spans – into a high-capacity shipping conduit.