China has officially launched construction of what will be the world’s largest hydroelectric dam on the Tibetan Plateau, a move that has raised alarms in India and Bangladesh over potential environmental and water security risks.
Premier Li Qiang attended the groundbreaking ceremony in Nyingchi, Tibet, on Saturday, state media reported. The massive dam will be built on the lower reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo River, which flows into India as the Brahmaputra before reaching Bangladesh.
First proposed in 2020 and approved late last year, the project is expected to generate an astonishing 300 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually—three times the capacity of China’s iconic Three Gorges Dam. It will feature five cascade hydropower stations, with a total investment of about 1.2 trillion yuan (US$167 billion).
While Beijing insists the project has been scientifically vetted and won’t harm downstream ecosystems or water rights, critics in India and Bangladesh fear it could disrupt river flows, threaten food security, displace populations, and even be weaponized to trigger floods or droughts.
The development comes amid long-standing border tensions. India has accelerated its own hydropower projects in Arunachal Pradesh—an area China claims as part of southern Tibet—further fueling strategic competition over shared water resources.
China has framed the dam as a climate-friendly initiative that will help prevent disasters and support regional adaptation to climate change. A new state-owned firm, China Yajiang Group, has been created to manage the project, with officials emphasizing innovation and ecological protection.
The coming years could see heightened geopolitical friction as the dam reshapes the dynamics of South Asia’s most vital river system.
