State Grid Corporation of China, China's largest state-owned grid operator and power company, has commissioned the Fukang pumped storage power station in northwest China's Xinjiang region.

The plant is equipped with three 300 MW turbines for a total capacity of 1.2 GW, the company said in a press release, noting that the plant is the first of its kind in northwest China. It is said that these turbines will be put into operation in early 2024. Construction work started in October 2020.

“The Fukang pumped storage power station can significantly improve Xinjiang’s power grid regulation capabilities and energy supply,” State Grid said. "It can ensure the stable transmission of large-scale new energy and can add 2.6 billion kilowatt-hours of new energy power generation every year."

In January 2022, China’s largest pumped storage project, the 3.6 GW pumped storage power station in Fengning, Hebei Province, was put into operation. The US$1.87 billion project was started by China Gezhouba Engineering Company in 2014 and will be implemented in two phases with a total installed capacity of 1.8 GW.

According to the National Energy Administration, China aims to have 62 GW of pumped hydro storage facilities operational by 2025 and 120 GW by 2030.