First 149 MW Unit of CGN's Weijiachong Pumped Storage Power Station in Hubei Enters Commercial Operation

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 16, Unit 1 of the Weijiachong Pumped Storage Power Station, built by China General Nuclear Power Group in Tuanfeng County, Huanggang City, Hubei Province, officially entered commercial operation, becoming China's first small and medium-sized pumped storage project to achieve unit commercial operation during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period. The station has a total installed capacity of 298 MW and is equipped with two reversible pump-turbine generator units with a single-unit capacity of 149 MW each. Currently, Unit 2 is undergoing installation and commissioning and is scheduled to be put into power generation within 2026.

The Weijiachong Pumped Storage Power Station is CGN's first pumped storage project independently developed and constructed, and is also a key implementation project under the National Medium- and Long-Term Development Plan for Pumped Storage (2021–2035). The project consists of an upper reservoir, a lower reservoir, a water conveyance and power generation system, and a powerhouse. It was approved by relevant departments of Hubei Province in September 2022, with a construction investment of approximately RMB 2.5 billion. The station adopts reversible pump-turbine units and, once completed, will undertake tasks such as peak shaving, valley filling, frequency regulation, energy storage, and emergency reserve for the Hubei power grid.

During project construction, the first unit's stay ring and spiral case were hoisted into place in August 2025. The unit adopts a vertical-shaft single-stage mixed-flow reversible pump-turbine, with a rated speed of 300 rpm and a maximum head of 194.85 meters. In December of the same year, the main concrete construction of Unit 1 was completed. On May 4, 2026, the generator rotor of the first unit was hoisted into place. The rotor has an outer diameter of 5.82 meters and a body height of 2.33 meters, with a total weight of 290 tons including the lifting rigging, and the overall hoisting required passing through a clearance of only 8 millimeters on one side.

After the station is fully completed, it is expected to generate 330 million kWh annually, saving 113,000 tons of standard coal and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 282,000 tons per year. The station will be connected to the Hubei power grid and participate in power system regulation through switching between pumping and generating modes, and will also undertake regulation tasks after the grid connection of new energy sources such as wind power and photovoltaics.