On Monday, the Chinese government approved plans to build a massive energy storage system in Gansu province, the Development and Reform Commission said in a statement.
The project, which requires a colossal investment in infrastructure, is due to be completed in the coming year, according to Bloomberg - and its implementation highlights China's growing ability to finance clean energy technologies.
The largest in the country
The proposed energy storage system, also sometimes referred to as a virtual power plant because it is a source of energy, although batteries only store energy, not generate, will be the largest in the country. The first stage of construction is expected to cost 1.2 billion yuan ($ 174 million).
China generated 706 gigawatts of solar and wind power as of September, according to Bloomberg. But due to the lack of a developed infrastructure to support these renewable energy sources, much of it has been wasted.
According to the authorities, the virtual power plant will have a capacity of 720 MWh and will be able to store unused electricity for four hours. In comparison, this is almost two-thirds of the capacity of Tesla's proposed Megapack energy system, which will create a virtual 1200 MWh power plant in California.
With a large-scale battery storage system, the people of Gansu province will be able to use clean energy as needed, rather than returning to burning fossil fuels when the sun goes down or the wind stops blowing.
Promotional video:
Sergey Lukavsky