Against the backdrop of energy structure transformation and the deepening of the "dual carbon" goal, pumped storage, as an important regulatory tool for the power system, is ushering in a new round of construction boom. Recently, Huadian Group and Three Gorges Group have made significant progress in several key projects worth billions of yuan, demonstrating the strong momentum of the industry's rapid development.

Huadian Group: Key progress made in two billion dollar projects

Huadian Group continues to make efforts in the field of pumped storage, with significant progress made in two landmark projects in Ningxia and Shandong. Among them, the Huadian Niushou Shandong Pumped Storage Power Station in Ningxia has launched the four core service supervision bidding for the entire construction cycle in December 2025, covering key links such as land acquisition and resettlement, soil and water conservation, blasting safety, and environmental protection, with a total investment of about 9.092 billion yuan. The project has been steadily progressing since its launch in 2022, and as of November 2025, the first floor structure of the main and auxiliary powerhouses of its underground hub project has been successfully connected. This centralized bidding has laid a solid foundation for the comprehensive commencement of the main project in 2026.

At the same time, Huadian Group's largest single pumped storage project in Shandong, the Yiyuan Shiqiao Pumped Storage Power Station, has also entered the substantive promotion stage. The planned installed capacity of the project is 1.8 million kilowatts, with a total investment of up to 12.52 billion yuan. Since 2025, the project has successively completed key milestones such as company unveiling, approval of land acquisition and resettlement planning outline, and clarified the goal of starting construction in 2026 and full capacity production in 2030, with a clear and orderly promotion path.

Three Gorges Group: Two key projects for the 14th Five Year Plan are being promoted simultaneously

As an important force in the industry, Three Gorges Group has also recently focused on layout in Hunan and Shaanxi provinces. In December 2025, the bidding candidates for the unit equipment procurement of two pumped storage power stations in You County, Hunan and Shanyang, Shaanxi were announced, with Harbin Electric Machinery Factory Co., Ltd. becoming the first candidate, highlighting its leading position in the field of pumped storage units.

These two projects are both key implementation projects of the national 14th Five Year Plan. The total investment of Youxian Power Station in Hunan Province is about 10.997 billion yuan. Significant progress has been made in the key lines of the main project, and the first unit is planned to be put into operation in 2029. The total investment of Shaanxi Shanyang Power Station is about 9.347 billion yuan, and its main project has also entered the critical stage. Key caverns such as ventilation safety tunnels have been connected, and the goal is also to have the first unit generate electricity by the end of 2029. Keywords: central enterprises, engineering construction, new energy news

Currently, with the approval and accelerated construction of a series of major national projects, China's pumped storage industry is steadily moving towards large-scale and high-quality development. The leading layout and solid promotion of central enterprises such as Huadian and Three Gorges not only provide key support for building a new power system, but also inject strong impetus into achieving energy transformation and the "dual carbon" strategic goals as scheduled. Editor/Xu Shengpeng