Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
FIGURE 2.2
Current institutional structure of hydropower generation in China. SOE = state-owned enterprise.
Two of the Five Energy Giants are particularly important to the story of water manage-
ment and hydropower production in Yunnan. China Huadian Group holds a state-granted
monopoly on the right to develop dam projects on the Nu River through its subsidiary Yun-
nan Huadian Nujiang Hydropower Development Company. Meanwhile, China Huaneng
Group holds the development rights on the Lancang River through its subsidiary Yunnan
Huaneng Lancang River Hydropower Company. It views hydropower as a key strategy for
what it terms “clean development [
qingjie fazhan
]” or “green development [
lüse fazhan
]”
(Huaneng 2010b), and company documents list carbon-emissions reductions and climate-
change mitigation among the many benefits of hydropower (Huaneng 2010a).
Although both Huaneng and Huadian remain state-owned enterprises, both are Fortune
500 companies with major subsidiaries that are publicly traded on the Hong Kong, Shang-
hai,andNewYorkStockExchanges,andbothenjoyclosetiestotheprovincialgovernment
formation of the construction entity Yunnan Huadian Hydropower Development Company,
