Two mega-kilowatt pumped storage power plants in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) officially started power generation on May 28, marking the power grid capacity in the GBA leading the world with the largest installed pumped storage, the strongest grid adjustment capacity, and the highest proportion of clean energy consumption among international bay areas, Chinese media cnr.cn reported on Monday.

The two pumped storage power plants are constructed by China Southern Power Grid (CSPG) located in Meizhou and Yangjiang in South China's Guangdong Province with a total installed capacity of 2.4 million kilowatts (KW), and will significantly enhance the power grid adjustment capacity of the GBA and effective promote large-scale and high proportional access to new energy resources.

The installed pumped storage capacity in southern China already exceeded 10 million KW, reaching 10.28 million KW, with the installed capacity of pumped storage in the GBA accounting 9.68 million KW. The average load of the power grid in the GBA can support the annual consumption of clean energy power over 210 billion kilowatt-hours per year (kwh), accounting nearly 50 percent of the total clean energy power according to one estimation.

The two pumped storage power stations are expected to optimize the peak power adjustment capacity of 3.4 billion kwh per year in the GBA after they fully enter operation, corresponding to a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions of 2.8 million tons, with an emission reduction effect equivalent to the purification effect of nearly 220,000 mu (14,666 hectares) of forest.

"The total investment in the two power stations was about 15 billion yuan ($2.24 billion). In addition to the sizable power adjustment benefit, the operation of the two stations can also generate investment for the upstream and downstream industry chain for about 30 billion yuan and create about 74,000 jobs," Liu Guogang, an official from CSPG said.

Some 121 construction units have participated in the project achieving successful results for 87 key technologies. The operation of each pumped storage station can generate about 100 million yuan of fiscal revenue for local governments.

Global Times