In the sea breeze of Shandong Bajiao Power Plant, a super unit called Rui Carbon quietly broke ground. The world's first molten salt coupled supercritical carbon dioxide power generation demonstration project has started here, with a 50 MW ultra large unit equipped with molten salt energy storage, turning carbon dioxide from exhaust gas into the key to power generation. CHG is burying an energy revolution in the foundation.

Carbon dioxide transformation into power generation key

On September 16, 2026, CHG Shandong Bajiao Power Plant reached its construction milestone, and the world's first molten salt coupled supercritical carbon dioxide power generation demonstration project, Rui Carbon, was officially launched. The project plans to construct one of the world's largest 50 megawatt supercritical carbon dioxide power generation units, equipped with a 100 megawatt per 400 megawatt hour molten salt energy storage system. The beauty of this combination lies in the fact that carbon dioxide has both gas-liquid dual characteristics in a supercritical state, capable of compressing like a gas and flowing like a liquid, which can efficiently drive turbines to do work and greatly improve power generation efficiency.

Molten salt energy storage, on the other hand, is like a giant power bank. During the day, surplus electricity is stored in high-temperature molten salt in the form of thermal energy, and then released at night or during peak hours to make up for the shortfall. It stores energy during low periods and discharges it during high periods, steadily connecting intermittent renewable energy to the power grid. As a carrier project for the development and engineering demonstration of key technologies for carbon dioxide thermal batteries, a major national science and technology project, the commencement of the Ruicarbon project marks a crucial step for China in the integration of supercritical carbon dioxide cycle power generation and new energy storage. Keywords: molten salt energy storage, supercritical carbon dioxide

Huaneng model photos enter the world

The significance of this project goes far beyond just a power plant. It is planned to be put into operation within 2027, which will provide valuable practical experience for the large-scale application of new energy storage technologies in multiple scenarios, contribute to the construction of China's new power system with Huaneng solutions, and provide a Chinese model for the low-carbon transformation of the global energy structure and the enhancement of renewable energy consumption capacity. By converting discarded carbon dioxide back into energy to drive turbines and storing surplus sunlight and wind into molten salt warehouses, CHG has directly answered the question of whether carbon reduction and supply can be achieved simultaneously through a demonstration project. When more similar units replicate and spread along this path, the pace of energy transformation will be more stable and faster.Editor/Min Jing