China begins construction on first utility-scale supercritical CO2 and molten salt energy plant

Construction began last week on a demonstration project at China Huaneng's Bajiao power station in Yantai, Shandong province, combining supercritical carbon dioxide power generation with molten salt energy storage. Xinhua, which reported the project on September 16, called it the world's first utility-scale plant of its kind.

The design uses surplus electricity from the station's existing coal units to heat molten salt when demand is low. During peak hours, the stored heat drives a supercritical unit that uses carbon dioxide rather than steam to generate electricity. The first phase includes a 50-megawatt supercritical unit and a 100-megawatt, 400-megawatt-hour molten salt storage system. The project is expected to go into operation next year.