On May 22, 2015, Jean-Francois ASTOLFI, senior vice president of hydro generation and engineering, EDF and vice president of International Hydropower Association (IHA), led a seven-person delegation to IWHR and met with IWHR President Kuang Shangfu and Vice President Jia Jinsheng. The two organizations (EDF and IWHR) signed an MOU to outline a framework for deeper cooperation with mutual benefits.

Dr. Kuang welcomed Mr. Astolfi's second visit within this year. He reviewed the close exchange between IWHR and EDF's division of hydro generation engineering in the past three years, and said that he was looking forward to future cooperation, within the framework of an MOU, in fields of rock-fill dam technology, dam safety, electromechanical equipment, sediment management, seismic safety, automatic monitoring, etc., so as to jointly contribute to hydropower development in both countries.

Mr. Astolfi thanked IWHR's hospitality, and said he was impressed by the achievements the institute has made in recent years. He briefly introduced the research and engineering strengths of the hydro division, which has recently experienced an adjustment of organizational structure, and said he was also looking forward to future technical exchange and cooperation. Antoine Badinier, vice president of the division, made a presentation on the characteristics of hydropower development in France and the business of EDF, emphasizing that IWHR and EDF complemented each other in many technical aspects.

An MOU was then signed by Dr. Jia and Ms. Song Xudan, General Manager of EDF (China) Holding Ltd.

After the meeting, the delegates also visited IWHR's lab of automatic monitoring, BITC distant diagnosis center for the Three Gorges Project, and lab of materials and structures.