GE Renewable Energy has connected all turbine units of the Jinzhai pumped storage power plant in China.
The 1.2GW hydro plant has now been connected to grid, having completed 15 days of trial operation.
Under the contract signed in 2017, GE Hydro Solutions was selected by Anhui Jinzhai Pumped Storage Power, one of the divisions of State Grid Xin Yuan, to supply four 300MW pumped storage turbines, generator-motors, plus balance of plant equipment for the Anhui Jinzhai pumped storage power plant in Anhui province.
The first two units were connected to the grid in October 2022.
Pascal Radue, President and CEO, GE Hydro Solutions, said: “Pumped storage is the largest source of energy storage that exists today, which can help stabilize the grid with the integration of wind and solar power.
“The Jinzhai project now fully operational will provide for a huge amount of clean energy to China and help stabilize the grid to ultimately integrate more renewable energies in a reliable way.
“And the beauty of hydropower projects is that it is set to be operational for the very long term, about 80 years, meaning that the project will provide affordable energy for several generations to come.”
China aims to build more than 200 pumped storage stations with a combined capacity of 270GW by 2025 (Bloomberg), to help solve grid stability challenge and integrate more renewable energy into the Chinese grid.
The Jinzhai project adds up to +12GW of pumped storage solutions GE has delivered in China, which represent more than 25% of the installed base in the country.