The 2013 Annual Meeting of CHINCOLD and the 3rd International Symposium on Rockfill Dams took place last week in Kunming, China.

The event was organised in collaboration with the China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research (IWHR) and the Chinese Society for Hydropower Engineering (CSHE), and attracted some 700 experts and practitioners from around the world.

We participated in the event as a co-sponsor, along with a number of our members, including: Carpi Tech, CEMIG, Changjiang Water Resource Commission and Institute of Survey, Planning Design and Research, China Three Gorges, CPI, EDF, Hohai University, Hubei Qingjiang Hydropower Development, Rushydro, Sinohydro, Volta River Authority, Zesco and MWH.

A number of presentations were given by our members during the event, including:

• A global overview of hydropower and the work of IHA (Richard Taylor, executive director, IHA)
• Underwater rehabilitation of a 113 m high concrete-face rockfill dam: Turimiquire, Venezuela, (Alberto M. Scuero, Carpi Tech, Italy)
• Technological measures to improve the operational safety of hydropower stations (Xiang Zejiang, vice president, Huaneng Lancang River Hydropower Corporation)
• Research on key technology for safe operation of 300 m grade arch dam during reservoir impounding (Yi Kui, director, Huaneng Lancang River Hydropower Corporation)
• Sino-African hydropower development (Miao Jun, Assistant general manager, Sinohydro International)
• Development of methodology for partially automated hydropower potential calculations using GIS technologies (Timofei Ivanov, head of GTS technical department, Rushydro)
• Discussion on some problems of high concrete dam construction (Zhang Guoxin, director of department of structures and materials, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research)