In the depths of the mountains, Luxi County is ushering in an energy revolution! Walking into the canyons of Xiangyang Township, Yunnan, a planned 2.1 million kilowatt pumped storage power station is about to be built. As a key milestone in China's "14th Five Year Plan" energy storage layout, the Luxi project not only carries the heavy responsibility of Yunnan power grid peak regulation and emergency response, but also reflects China's breakthrough in clean energy dispatch and infrastructure capabilities.

Revitalize old reservoirs

Unlike a completely newly built pumped storage power station, the Luxi project creatively utilizes the existing Fenghuanggu hydropower station reservoir as the lower reservoir, connecting the newly built upper reservoir through a 3220 meter water transmission system. The upper reservoir is located in a mountainous depression, with a storage capacity of 13.18 million cubic meters and a maximum dam height of 59 meters, forming a drop of 663 meters, allowing water energy to circulate between the upper and lower reservoirs, greatly saving construction costs and ecological impact.

Stable Supply to Southwest Power Grid

The core of the power station is hidden deep in the mountain: the main building is nearly 220 meters long and 58 meters high, and can accommodate 6 reversible units with a single capacity of 350000 kilowatts. Combined with dozens of caverns such as the main transformer tunnel and the outgoing shaft, it forms an "underground power station maze". After completion, it can flexibly adjust peak load and fill valley every day, which is equivalent to equipping Yunnan power grid with a giant "power bank", enhancing the consumption capacity of new energy such as wind power and photovoltaics.

China's infrastructure reveals its sword again

In this bidding, Kunming Institute, a subsidiary of PowerChina, won the bid with a price of 8.594 billion yuan, while Zhongnan Institute ranked second with a slight price difference. In recent years, China's pumped storage construction has accelerated, with over 50 million kilowatts of installed capacity put into operation nationwide. As an important regulatory hub in Southwest China, the Luxi project, once put into operation, will add another barrier to regional power security and inject vitality into China's achievement of its "dual carbon" goals.Editor/Yang Meiling