Drilling is an important technical means of engineering geological investigation. The engineering geological data obtained by drilling is an important basis for the planning， design and construction of water conservancy and hydropower projects. In recent years， drilling technology and related equipment has been continuously innovated and developed with implementation of water conservancy and hydropower projects. The main contents of this paper include： water pressure while drilling test technology， self-vibration pumping test technology， drilling and sampling technology for sand layers， soft soil layers and gravel layers， large angle inclined hole drilling technology， sonic drilling technology， full hydraulic power head drilling machines， shallow water drilling technology and water conservancy and hydropower curtain grouting automatic recorders. Proper selection and usage of the technology and equipment will produce great social and economic benefits for optimization of these water conservancy projects. This paper also analyzes and envisions the development trend of drilling technology for water conservancy and hydropower projects.