Chinese Dams in Africa / key documents

Construction work on China's Kamchay Dam in Cambodia (Marcus Rhinelander)

China counts half of the world’s large dams within its borders, and is the biggest producer of hydropower. Throughout the 20th century, Western companies helped China build up its hydropower capacity. Yet in the huge Ertan and Three Gorges projects of the 1990s, China changed the rules of the game. Companies interested in the multi-billion dollar contracts had to manufacture half the turbines and generators on Chinese soil, in cooperation with Chinese partners. The leading hydropower firms of the time – including ABB, Alstom, General Electric and Siemens – complied, and transferred their technology in the process.