BEIJING, April 4 -- The cargo throughput at the ship lock of the Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydropower project, totaled 30.2 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2024, official data showed on Thursday.

Despite severe weather conditions and a suspension of the dam's northern ship lock due to maintenance work, the project maintained smooth and orderly operations in the first three months of the year, according to the China Three Gorges Corporation.

From January to March, a total of 8,080 ships passed through the ship lock at the Three Gorges Dam, authorities have said.

The Three Gorges ship lock officially opened to navigation in 2004, becoming a multi-functional water control system on the Yangtze River, the country's longest waterway.

For 10 consecutive years from 2014 to 2023, the cargo throughput at the ship lock exceeded 100 million tonnes, official data shows.