Hubei has an excellent energy foundation with an exploitable capacity of 33.1 million kw, ranking the leading place of Chinese power field. Gezhouba Hydroelectric Station that is still under construction are both located in Hubei province. More than 600 electric enterprises are set up, the installed capacity ranked the second in China. While producing power by water, Hubei speeds up a series of thermal Power Plants. Three Gorges Key Water Conservancy Project with an installed capacity of 18.20 million kw has been under the construction.
Hubei also has the advantage of metal minerals. There are types of metals minerals which ten reserves come to the second place in China; rutile reserves come to the lst place with above 5.58 million tons, taking up 75% of the total reserves. Other ten minerals range from the 3rd to the 8th places in China. Iron reserves ranks the 6th and copper reserves ranks the 7th in China. Rich copper reserves containing copper above 1% take up 10.9% of China is rich copper reserves. Nonmetal reserves are also large in quantity. Take the salt as an example, according to preliminary survey, Hubei ranks the fifth for its salt reserves of 25 billion tons.
Hydropower Base
Hubei has abundant water resources. The total hydropower deposits are 42 million kw of which 38 million kw are usable, ranked the fourth most in China. The Three Gorges Hydropower Station, upon station of the world, which can generate electricity of 84.7 billion kwh each year.
Gezhouba Hydropower Station is the first hydropower station in the trunk of the Yangtze River, with an installed capacity of 2.73 million kw. Other famous hydropower stations include Qingjiang Geheyan Hydropower Station and Danjiangkou Hydropower Station. In 1999, the electricity generated in hydropower stations of Hubei hit 22.5 billion kwh.
Since 1978, Hubei has set up several thermal power stations in Hanchuan, Yangluo, Ezhou and Xiangfan. Other thermal power stations under construction or to be constructed are in Huanggang, Yichang, Jingzhou and Puqi. In 1999,the electricity generated in thermal power stations was 28.3 billion kwh.
Mineral Resources
110 types of minerals have been found in Hubei, accounting for 74% of all the 150 type of minerals already found in China. Among 135 type of minerals whose reserves have been surveyed in China, 77 types are in Hubei, Among them, the reserves of phosphorus, cement marl, silica, garmet and ratile come to the first place.
23 type of mineral such as iron, copper, gypsum, rock salt, gold, mercury, manganese, vanadium, cement limestone, dolomite, marble, refactory clay rank before the seventh place in China, 20 type of minerals rank before the 13th in China. In terms of production output, there are many minerals, which are very important in China among 43 types of minerals that have already exploited in Hubei. For instance, fiber gypsum takes up 86% of the total output of China, graded phosphorus 2.5%, copper 15%, barite 10%. Phosphorus and gypsum are not only large in reserves, but also play important role in China during their current exploitation and utilization.
