Tai'an hydropower phase II project is a 1.8GW pumped storage power station under construction in the Shandong province, China.

State Grid Xinyuan Company, a subsidiary of State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC), is developing the project with an estimated investment of £1.17bn ($1.55bn).

Preliminary works of the pumped storage power project commenced in December 2020, after Shandong Provincial Development and Reform Commission approved the construction of the phase II of the project in December 2019.

Main construction activities on the project started in April 2021 and the pumped storage power station is expected to begin operations by 2029.

Project Gallery

At full capacity, Tai'an pumped storage power station is estimated to generate approximately 1.8 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per year under the second phase. It is expected to consume about 2.4 billion kWh of energy in the pumping mode.

The pumped storage station is also estimated to reduce the consumption of 650,000 tonnes (t) of raw coal annually, and offset approximately 1.3 million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year.

Location and site details

The Tai'an pumped storage power station phase II is located approximately 20km from Tai'an city in Shandong province, China.

The project site lies in the high-tech industrial development zone of the Culai town, and in the Xiwen scenic area.

Taian pumped storage power station phase II make-up

The Tai'an pumped storage power station phase II will feature six 300MW reversible single-stage vertical shaft mixed flow hydro-generator units, designed to deliver a total power output of 1,800MW.

The power plant will be designed to operate at a rated water head of 454m.

The other components include a 500kV switching station consisting of six main transformers with a capacity of 300MVA each, an outlet cable, and the electrical equipment and related facilities.

Power evacuation

The electricity produced from the Tai'an pumped storage power station phase II will be delivered to the Shandong power grid through two 500kV power transmission lines.

Contractors involved

Sixth Hydropower Bureau was awarded a £63.01m ($85.54m) contract by State Grid Company to undertake road and housing construction works related to the preparatory phase of Tai'an pumped storage power station phase II in January 2021. The contract scope involved the construction of traffic tunnel and ancillary cavern, ventilation and safety tunnel, substation site levelling works, and highway works.

Eleventh Hydropower Bureau won a bid to build office and living area, including two camps Keluoshan and Cuiwei, in Shandong Taian for the owner of the pumped-storage power station in December 2021.

China National General Machinery Engineering Corporation was selected to supply power station fire alarm system, ventilation and air conditioning system, laboratory equipment, and industrial TV monitoring system.

East China Research Institute was contracted for the survey and design works of the Tai'an power station phase II.

Taian pumped storage power station phase I details

The phase I of Tai'an pumped storage power station has a total generation capacity of 1GW, featuring four 250MW mixed-flow reversible hydro-generator units. The power station is located at the southwest foot of Taishan Scenic Area, 5km away from Tai'an city.

Constructed with an estimated investment of £277m ($540.33m), the Tai'an phase I was put into commercial operation in June 2007.

The power station consists of upper and lower reservoirs, an underground water delivery system, and an underground powerhouse.

The upper reservoir comprises a 98.3m high concrete face rockfill dam with a crest length of 547m, whereas the lower reservoir includes a homogeneous earth dam 22m high with a dam crest length of 460m.

The upper reservoir basin covers a watershed area of 1.43km2 with a normal storage level at 410m. The total reservoir capacity is 10.431 million cubic metres (mcm).

The lower reservoir is a reconstructed Dahe reservoir that covers a total area of 84.5km2. The total storage capacity of the lower reservoir is 29.971mcm with a normal water storage level at 165m.

China Hydropower Construction Group Hydropower Bureau Number One, Hydropower Bureau Number Four, and Hydropower Bureau Number 12 carried out main construction activities of the Tai'an pumped storage power station phase I.

The phase I power station generates approximately 1.3 billion kWh of electricity per year.

It was built to support peak, frequency and phase regulation, valley filling and the Shandong power grid emergency backup activities.