State Grid Zhenjiang Power Supply Company: World's highest-dam pumped storage power station fully operational

The State Grid Xinyuan Jiangsu Jurong Pumped Storage Power Station, the world's highest-dam pumped storage facility, was fully put into operation on Oct 28, adding another large-scale clean energy regulation source to the East China region.

Located in Jurong, a county-level city in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province, the station is a key construction project under State Grid Corporation's 13th Five-Year Plan and a major provincial-level project. With a total installed capacity of 1.35 million kilowatts, it is equipped with six reversible pump-turbine generator units, each with a capacity of 225,000 kW. The station is designed to generate 1.35 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually and consume 1.8 billion kWh in pumping mode. A total of 21 kilometers of new transmission lines and 53 transmission towers have been built to support the project, connecting the station to the East China Power Grid via a 500 kilovolts power outlet.

"Once fully operational, the station will provide approximately 2.7 million kW of bidirectional power regulation capacity, effectively alleviating peak grid load pressure and significantly enhancing the integration of renewable energy," said Wang Chenhui, director of the development department at State Grid Zhenjiang Power Supply Company. The station is expected to save about 140,000 metric tons of standard coal and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 349,000 tons annually, contributing to energy security and green, low-carbon transformation in the Yangtze River Delta region.

The station's upper reservoir dam is 182.3 meters tall, equivalent to the height of a 60-story building, making it the highest pumped storage power station in the world. It can store 17.07 million cubic meters of water, which is 20 percent more than the storage capacity of West Lake.

"The Jurong Station has set multiple industry records, and achieved technological breakthroughs in areas such as the development of anti-seepage geomembranes and the hoisting of super-large spherical valves, providing a model and reference for constructing pumped storage power stations in high-load plain areas in China," said Chen Hongchun, chairman of State Grid Xinyuan Jiangsu Jurong Pumped Storage Power Station Co.

Since the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), State Grid Corporation has put into operation a total of 78 pumped storage units, bringing its operational capacity to 44.53 million kW and providing reliable support for the development of China's new power system.