Just as the National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference have come to an end, engineers from a water conservancy design institute in Beijing have become busy. On the conference table, a document marked with the "List of Major Water Conservancy Projects during the Tenth Five Year Plan" was repeatedly reviewed - the construction of Shangbaishi Reservoir in Fujian with a total investment of 8 billion yuan, the follow-up project of the Taihu Lake Lake and Taipu River with a total investment of 12 billion yuan, and the water resource allocation project of Liaodong Peninsula with a total investment of 20.7 billion yuan had all been specified to start in 2026. From the venue of the Two Sessions to the front line of engineering, a ten-year water conservancy construction boom with a total investment of over 7 trillion yuan is accelerating and sweeping across the country.

Two sessions set a target of 7 trillion yuan investment

On March 6, 2026, at the economic themed press conference of the National People's Congress, Zheng Zhajie, Director of the National Development and Reform Commission, clearly stated that this year the focus will be on promoting the construction of six networks, including water grid, power grid, and computing power grid, with an annual investment of over 7 trillion yuan in key areas including water grid. At the press conference of the State Council Information Office on March 7th, Chen Lei, Director of the Planning Department of the National Development and Reform Commission, refined the tasks and emphasized that during the 15th Five Year Plan period, the focus will be on promoting modern water network construction, with a particular emphasis on flood control reservoirs and major water diversion projects. The Ministry of Water Resources will deploy synchronously and implement a batch of major water conservancy projects by 2026, forming a policy loop from high-level allocation to departmental implementation.

Diversified funds escort the landing

According to the latest data of the Ministry of Finance in 2026, the preference of local government special bonds to the water conservancy sector has increased by 20% over the previous year, and the super long-term special treasury bond of 1.3 trillion yuan issued in 2025 has been superimposed, gradually building a multi capital pattern of financial leadership, financial support and social participation. In February 2026, the Ministry of Water Resources and the National Development and Reform Commission jointly issued implementation opinions, clearly supporting private enterprises to participate in the construction and operation of major water conservancy projects. In the first quarter of 2025, social capital investment in the water conservancy sector has reached 37.28 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 33.2%. During the 15th Five Year Plan period, the proportion of private capital will increase to over 15%. Keywords: Infrastructure Engineering News Network, Water Conservancy Infrastructure

Major projects bloom at multiple points

Based on the 2026 Key Projects List of the Ministry of Water Resources, a number of landmark projects have entered the implementation stage. The Shangbaishi Reservoir in Fujian, with a total investment of 8 billion yuan, focuses on the weakness of flood control in eastern Fujian. The follow-up project of the Taihu Lake Lake and Taipu River, with a total investment of 12 billion yuan, solves the pain point of drainage in the Yangtze River Delta. After the completion of the Liaoning Liaodong Peninsula Water Resources Allocation Project, with a total investment of 20.7 billion yuan, the annual water supply will reach 477 million cubic meters, which will completely solve the water shortage problem in Dalian. According to the plan, for every 100 billion yuan invested in water conservancy construction during the 15th Five Year Plan period, 490000 new job opportunities can be created, which is expected to drive employment for over 34 million people. The average annual growth rate of orders in segmented fields such as pumps and valves, pipelines, and intelligent monitoring will reach over 15%.Editor/Gao Xue