China is building the world’s largest hydroelectric dam in Tibet

China has approved construction of the world’s largest hydroelectric dam, kicking off an ambitious project on the eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau that could affect millions of people downstream in India and Bangladesh.

The dam will be located in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River and will be capable of producing 300 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, according to a 2020 estimate by the Power Construction Corp of China.

The new dam, with a capacity of 88.2 billion kWh, has the capacity of the Three Gorges Dam, currently the world’s largest, in central China. The project will play an important role in achieving China’s carbon peak and carbon neutrality targets, boosting related industries such as engineering and creating jobs in Tibet, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday.

Read more | Outlook: China’s flood problems and what India can learn from them

A section of the Yarlung Zangbo drops a dramatic 2,000 meters (6,561 feet) within a short 50 km (31 mile) span, offering enormous hydroelectric potential as well as unique engineering challenges.

The cost of building the dam, including engineering costs, is also expected to exceed that of the Three Gorges Dam, which cost 254.2 billion yuan ($34.83 billion). This included the resettlement of the 1.4 million displaced people and was more than four times the original estimate of 57 billion yuan.

Authorities have not specified how many people the Tibet project would displace or how it would affect the local ecosystem, one of the richest and most diverse on the plateau.

Read more: Bangladesh favors India over China in $1 billion river project

Chinese officials say hydropower projects in Tibet hold more than a third of China’s hydropower potential and would not have a major impact on the environment or downstream water supplies

India and Bangladesh have nonetheless expressed concerns about the dam, saying the project may alter not only the local ecology but also the flow and course of the river downstream.

The Yarlung Zangbo becomes the Brahmaputra River as it leaves Tibet and flows south into the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam and ultimately into Bangladesh.

China has already started hydroelectric power generation on the upper reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo, which flows from west to east Tibet. It is planning further projects in advance.