All in all, NGOs are following the money. With the project's unofficial budget estimates at five to six times what was approved in 1992, the demand for foreign assistance is growing. Indeed, China's foreign exchange could be used to further prop-up the project, but stiff competition for such monies by a growing portfolio of projects combined with the lack of unanimous support for Three Gorges Dam at the upper levels of the government is forcing the Three Gorges Project Development Corporation to continue seeking foreign support. But such support may be more difficult to come by. Concern over the deteriorating health of China's banking sector resulting from the growing amount of non-performing assets, combined with mounting skepticism of Asian markets generally, should tighten international credit for projects like Three Gorges and others in the SDB portfolio.
Time is still on the opponents' side.
Full construction of the dam has yet to commence as the coffer dam around the dam site remains incomplete. When it is completed, the real need for money begins and at the same time major technical problems will emerge, delays will occur, and costs will escalate further . For example, the company building the dam also built the much smaller Gezhouba Dam just downstream of Three Gorges. Many dams have been halted after construction began, including the recent indefinite suspension of the Bakun Dam in Malaysia. This could easily happen with Three Gorges.