By the end of this year, China's total power generation capacity will exceed 800 million kilowatts and by 2010, the total could reach 1 billion kilowatts, according to National Energy Board Secretary Zhang Guobao. However, the proportion of hydropower in the total installed capacity has decreased significantly. At China's hydropower development forum, it was made imperative to lower the proportion of coal-fired electricity generating units and vigorously develop hydropower, wind power and other renewable energy sources.

"By the end of 2007, China's installed capacity had reached 713 million kilowatts. Even by the most conservative estimates, this year the newly installed power generation will reach 90 million kilowatts, which means that by the end of this year, the country's electricity installed capacity will no doubt reach 800 million kilowatts, and by the year 2010 may reach 1 billion kilowatts," said Zhang Guobao.

It is understood that China's power construction maintains a high growth rate, and the total installed capacity has ranked second in the world after the United States for 10 consecutive years. However, as an important renewable energy, the capacity to generate hydropower accounted for only 20 percent of the nation's total capacity, and dropped by four percentage points compared to the previous two years. Zhang warned that although the installed capacity of electricity has seen rapid growth; at the same time, problems such as the irrational structure of China's power industry sources, the excessive consumption of resources and other issues, are still very prominent. Thermal power units make up approximately 75 percent of the current total installed capacity. Therefore, "it has become imperative to lower the proportion of coal-fired electricity generating units and to vigorously develop hydropower, wind power and other renewable energy sources."

In response to questioning and the voice of opposition caused by ecological problems resulting from hydropower development in recent years, Zhang Guobao says we are against demonizing hydropower. It is ex parte to think all hydropower development programs have problems and be unwilling to see the bright side. "Hydropower construction is bound to cut off rivers, submerge some biological resources in water, change some aquatic organisms living environment, and will inevitably change the local ecological environment; but we must make an objective assessment of the impact on the ecological environment. I still believe that hydropower is clean energy," he said.