Compressed air energy storage china institute of energy storage technology physics

What is a compressed air energy storage project?

A compressed air energy storage (CAES) project in Hubei, China, has come online, with 300MW/1,500MWh of capacity. The 5-hour duration project, called Hubei Yingchang, was built in two years with a total investment of CNY1.95 billion (US$270 million) and uses abandoned salt mines in the Yingcheng area of Hubei, China’s sixth-most populous province.

What is CAES (compressed air energy storage)?

Recently, a major breakthrough has been made in the field of research and development of the Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) system in China, which is the completion of integration test on the world-first 300MW expander of advanced CAES system marking the smooth transition from development to production.

How can compressed air energy storage improve the stability of China's power grid?

The intermittent nature of renewable energy poses challenges to the stability of the existing power grid. Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) that stores energy in the form of high-pressure air has the potential to deal with the unstable supply of renewable energy at large scale in China.

What are the advantages of compressed air energy storage technology?

Energy storage technologies have been viewed as a key supporting technology for the energy revolution and a national strategic emerging technology. Compressed air energy storage technology holds many advantages such as high capacity, low cost, high efficiency, and environmental friendliness.

What is a CAES energy storage system?

CAES is a relatively mature energy storage technology that stores electrical energy in the form of high-pressure air and then generates electricity through the expansion of high-pressure air when needed. It has many advantages such as high reliability, low energy storage cost, flexible layout, and negligible environmental impact .

What is a 300MW compressed air expander?

The successful development of the 300MW compressed air expander stands as a significant milestone in domestic compressed air energy storage domain. Not only does it mark a turning point for advanced compressed air energy technology, but it also propels the nation's capabilities to unprecedented height.