Photo: State Grid Corp. of China
After testing the last units in its Fengning pumped storage hydropower station, State Grid now operates the largest such facility on the planet. It has 3.6 GW in generation capacity and consists of 12 units.
China crowned a string of record and breakthrough achievements in green energy technology in 2024 with the commissioning of the world’s biggest pumped storage hydroelectric plant. The Fengning facility is located in Fengning county in Hebei province, north of Beijing. It is operated by State Grid Corp. of China (SGCC).
The Fengning pumped storage hydropower plant consists of twelve 300 MW reversible units. Two are China’s first large-scale variable speed generators, which enable fast primary frequency control and peak shaving.
Fengning is the first pumped storage hydropower plant connected to a flexible DC grid
Annual output is estimated at 6.61 TWh while the system will pump 8.72 TWh, according to the company. Since the first two units came online in late 2021, the facility generated more than 8.6 TWh.
Four 500 kV lines connect it to a flexible direct current (DC) grid, which is also the world’s first, the utility pointed out. The converter station receives electricity from wind and solar power plants.
The upper reservoir can store almost 40 GWh, State Grid added. It explained that the 12 units can run for up to 10.8 hours on maximum capacity of 3.6 GW. So far the world’s largest pumped storage hydropower plant was the Bath County station in Virginia in the United States, at 3 GW.
Largest underground powerhouse on Earth
Total length of the world’s largest underground powerhouse, in Fengning, is 414 meters, with 54.5 meters in height. The tunnels and as many as 190 caverns are 50.1 kilometers long overall, according to State Grid.
China’s dominant network operator and power producer now operates a combined 40.6 GW in pumped storage. It has 75 facilities online or under construction, amounting to a total of 94 GW.
Reversible turbines pump water to the upper reservoir or generate electricity, depending on the need. The pump mode is usually on at night, when power is cheaper, and when there is excess production from renewable sources. When demand in the system surpasses supply, pumped storage plants release the water from above and produce electricity. They are still the only conventional storage technology, accounting to over 90% of storage capacity on the grids.
China cements green energy tech dominance with Fengning facility
China dwarfed the rest of the world in solar panel manufacturing and exports last year, especially to the European Union. The administration in Brussels is reluctant to impose any curbs because it has green energy goals to achieve.
Even though China is still steadily increasing the use of coal in electricity production, it is also installing more than half of the world’s solar and wind power capacity. Moreover, it is at the top of the chart in most zero emission technologies, especially electric cars, batteries and wind turbines. The country also hosts the world’s largest hydropower plant.
China is a major investor in Southeastern Europe as well. For instance, projects worth a total of EUR 2 billion are under preparation for wind farms, solar power plants and green hydrogen in Serbia.
State Grid agreed in November to buy 20% of the Ariadne Interconnection project in Greece. The subsea high-voltage direct current (HDVC) power line, which is undergoing testing, is 335 kilometers long. It connects the Attica peninsula, where Athens is located, with the island of Crete.
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