China begins second Three Gorges ship lock to ease Yangtze congestion

Overview

Updated 53 minutes ago

The Three Gorges ship lock was built to move 100 million tonnes of cargo a year by 2030. It passed that mark in 2011, 19 years early. In 2025, 173 million tonnes went through, and vessels queue for days to use a lock running at 160% to 170% of its design capacity.

On June 8, 2026, construction began on a second lock system beside the first. The five-tier, dual-track channel is cut into the north bank at a cost of 77.2 billion yuan ($11.3 billion). Planners expect it to lift the hub's annual capacity to 336 million tonnes.

Why it matters

The Yangtze belt moves 85% of its iron ore and foreign trade on this river. The new lock decides whether that traffic grows or stalls.

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Key Indicators

$11.3B

Project cost

Static investment estimate of 77.2 billion yuan for the new lock and the Gezhouba upgrade.

336M tonnes

Planned annual capacity

Throughput the Three Gorges hub is meant to handle once the new lock opens.

173M tonnes

2025 throughput

Cargo that passed the hub last year, against a design capacity of 100 million tonnes.

100M tonnes

Original design capacity

The target the existing lock was expected to reach around 2030.

6,680 m

Length of new lock and approach channels

Each chamber is 280 metres long and 40 metres wide at the base.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

People Involved

Ding Xuexiang

Vice Premier of China; member of the Communist Party Standing Committee

In office

Niu Xinqiang

Academician, Chinese Academy of Engineering

Advising on the project

Hu Ya'an

Academician, Chinese Academy of Engineering

Advising on the project

Zhang Chaoran

Academician, Chinese Academy of Engineering

Advising on the project

Gao Peng

Deputy chief engineer, China Three Gorges Corporation

In office

Jiang Zhongjin

Container ship captain on the Yangtze

Working the river

Organizations Involved

China Three Gorges Corporation

State-owned energy developer

Operates the dam and its navigation facilities; managing the expansion

The state company that runs the Three Gorges Dam, its ship locks and the Gezhouba Dam downstream.

Ministry of Transport

Central government ministry

Regulates Yangtze shipping; backs the expansion

The ministry responsible for China's waterways, ports and shipping regulation.

Timeline

2003 November 2026

7 events Latest: Today

Tap a bar to jump to that date

November 2026
Work confirmed underway on the Yangtze bypass
Today Report

Beijing Post reported that construction had started on the $11 billion project to bypass Three Gorges congestion.
Today
June 2026
Detailed schedule published
Announcement

State media reported a 112-month lock schedule, 95 months at Gezhouba, and 160 million cubic metres of excavation.
June 11th, 2026
Construction begins at Yichang
Infrastructure

Ding Xuexiang launched the 77.2 billion yuan project: a new five-tier lock at Three Gorges and an expansion at Gezhouba.
June 8th, 2026
2025
Annual throughput reaches 173 million tonnes
Milestone

The locks ran at 160% to 170% of design capacity, with vessels waiting days to transit.
2025
2021
Yangtze River Protection Law takes effect
Regulation

The law imposed stricter rules on development along the river, including protections for aquatic species.
2021
2011
Lock throughput passes 100 million tonnes
Milestone

The five-tier lock exceeded its 2030 design target 19 years early.
2011
2003
Three Gorges reservoir fills
Infrastructure

Impoundment raised water levels above 130 shoals, turning the Yichang–Chongqing stretch into a Class I channel for vessels up to 5,000 tonnes.
2003

Scenarios

New Three Gorges lock opens for commercial traffic by 2035

Likely Resolves by End of 2035

Discussed by: China Three Gorges Corporation and Xinhua, citing the 112-month schedule published at the June 2026 start

The published schedule runs 112 months including 12 months of preparation, which puts completion in late 2035. Meeting it requires the north-bank excavation, five lock chambers and approach channels to stay in sequence. China has built large locks on schedule before, but not at this chamber size.

Cost overrun pushes the project past 100 billion yuan

Possible Resolves by End of 2032

Discussed by: Gao Peng, deputy chief engineer of China Three Gorges Corporation, who described a 2 billion yuan design change before construction began

The 77.2 billion yuan figure is a static estimate made before construction. The redesign to protect Chinese sturgeon spawning grounds already added 2 billion yuan. A 30% overrun would put the total above 100 billion.

Freight demand outgrows the expanded lock

Uncertain Resolves by End of 2040

Discussed by: Chinese Academy of Engineering academicians Zhang Chaoran and Hu Ya'an, who documented the first lock's forecast miss

The first lock was expected to hit 100 million tonnes in 2030 and did so in 2011. If traffic keeps compounding at the pace of the past 15 years, the new 336 million tonne ceiling could be reached well before the lock's design life ends.

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

2007–2016

Panama Canal expansion (2007–2016)

Panama began building a third set of locks in 2007 to let New Panamax ships through a canal opened in 1914. Disputes over concrete and faulty lock gates pushed the opening two years past the original 2014 target.

Then

The new locks opened on June 26, 2016, roughly doubling canal capacity.

Now

Larger container ships shifted routes toward the canal, but a 2023–24 drought later cut daily transits.

Why this matters now

A parallel lock built to relieve a hard bottleneck, with a schedule that slipped and a payoff that depended on demand forecasts holding.

2014–2015