The boat was part of a free community service that has connected villages around the Chaglla Hydropower Station for more than a decade.

　　The service began in 2015. Since 2019, when the Chaglla Hydropower Station came under operation led by China Three Gorges Corp (CTG) and its subsidiary Hubei Energy Group, the operating team has maintained the free boat service for local residents" daily travel as part of its regular community work, providing boats, fuel, crew and safety equipment.

　　Over more than a decade, the boats have traveled about 140,000 kilometers and carried approximately 100,000 passengers, according to project figures. Some journeys that once took a day and a half can now be completed in roughly 40 minutes, the Global Times learned.

　　The Chaglla boat offers a small, concrete view of a broader form of China"s clean energy cooperation with other countries: alongside building and operating major projects, Chinese companies are increasingly seeking to ensure that local communities share the benefits of development. It also illustrates the Global Development Initiative"s emphasis on people-centered, inclusive and equitable, action-oriented development.

　　A small, busy boat

　　Every morning, 45-year-old Cierto rises at 5:30 am. After breakfast, he says a prayer and leaves the camp at about 6:30 am for the reservoir dock. The crew holds a safety briefing before departure. Four operators rotate shifts to keep the service running throughout the week.

　　There are two fixed community trips each day, at 9 am and 3:30 pm. The regular run from the dam to Agua Nueva takes about 30 minutes one way. The boat carries residents from Agua Nueva, Santa Elena, Miraflores, Pucaplaya, Torre Jirca and Rinconada, as well as people from Huanchag, Huanipampa and Pampamarca who need to visit relatives, tend farms or transport agricultural products.