China-africa air energy storage

Will China accelerate the development of compressed air energy storage projects?

Now, China is expected to accelerate the development of its far less prevalent compressed air energy storage (CAES) projects to optimize its power grid performance and move in a greener direction.

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 China's energy storage capacity?

Of all the types of energy storage in China, CAES will represent 10% by 2025 and then surge to 23% by 2030, if all goes to plan. The China Industrial Association of Power Sources (CIAPS) said in an April report that China’s total energy storage capacity topped the world at 43.44 GW at the end of 2021.

What is compressed air energy storage (CAES)?

Among the different ES technologies, compressed air energy storage (CAES) can store tens to hundreds of MW of power capacity for long-term applications and utility-scale. The increasing need for large-scale ES has led to the rising interest and development of CAES projects.

How efficient is China's new compressed air plant?

According to China Energy Storage Alliance, the new plant can store and release up to 400 MWh, at a system design efficiency of 70.4%. That's huge; current compressed air systems are only around 40-52% efficient, and even the two larger Hydrostor CAES plants scheduled to open in California in 2026 are only reported to be around 60% efficient.

Is China ready to commercialize energy storage?

China is currently in the early stage of commercializing energy storage. As of 2017, the cumulative installed capacity of energy storage in China was 28.9 GW , accounting for only 1.6% of the total power generating capacity (1777 GW ), which is still far below the goal set by the State Grid of China (i.e., 4%–5% by 2020) .