China’s Huaneng Group has launched the second phase of its Jintan Salt Cavern Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) project in Changzhou, Jiangsu province, in a new milestone for the global energy storage sector. Once completed, the project will hold the title of the world’s largest compressed air energy storage facility, integrating groundbreaking advancements in both power output and efficiency.
Phase two of the project will feature two 350 MW non-fuel supplementary CAES units, with a total storage volume of 1.2 million cubic meters. This scale makes it the largest single-unit power generation capacity, total storage capacity, and integrated efficiency of any CAES facility worldwide. The plant’s storage capacity will allow for up to 2.8 GWh of electricity per full charge, with an estimated annual 330 charge-discharge cycles.
The first phase of the Jintan project, completed earlier, saw the installation of a 60 MW CAES unit, offering valuable operational experience and laying the groundwork for the more advanced second phase.
