China Yangtze Three Gorges Corporation announced recently that 90.92m tons of cargo passed through the Three Gorges Dam during the first 10 months of 2011, more than the total for the whole of last year. By the end of December, more than 100m tons will have passed the dam, a record amount since the shiplocks started operation in 2003.

The shiplocks were designed to pass up to 50m tons a year. Over recent years, technical renovation projects, along with the vessel standardisation programme and improved management, have doubled the capacity. But the challenge remains how to further increase capacity to meet rising demand.