CHN Energy’s first pumped storage power station, Hubei Songzi Pumped Storage Power Station, started construction on May 11. Financed and developed independently by CHN Energy, the project marks substantial progress in its participation in the pumped storage sector and its efforts to advance the development of a new power system.
Underground powerhouse construction at the Songzi Pumped Storage Power Station
The power station is located in Songzi, Jingzhou, central China’s Hubei Province, with a planned total installed capacity of 1,200 megawatts. The project is designed to install four reversible pump-turbine generator units, each with a single-unit capacity of 300 megawatts. Its main structures include the upper reservoir, lower reservoir, water conveyance system and underground powerhouse. The main dam of the upper reservoir stands 54 meters high, while the lower reservoir adopts a roller-compacted concrete gravity dam with a maximum height of 66 meters. The water conveyance and power generation system features a layout of two tunnels serving four units, with a rated generating head of 378 meters. The underground powerhouse has a maximum excavation height of 57.27 meters.
After full commissioning, the project is expected to generate 1.34 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually and consume 1.79 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity for pumping each year. Once put into operation, the power station will mainly undertake comprehensive functions for the Hubei power grid, including peak shaving, valley filling, energy storage, frequency regulation and emergency backup support.
The construction of large-scale pumped storage power stations plays a critical role in ensuring the safe and stable operation of regional power grids, optimizing local power supply structures, and supporting the large-scale integration and consumption of new energy. In addition, supported by the coordinated planning surrounding the pumped storage station, development rights for approximately 1.5 million kilowatts of new energy resources in nearby areas have also been secured, further promoting the coordinated development of a regional multi-energy complementary system.
