The first pumped-storage hydroelectricity facility of Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, which will also be the first peaking power plant in Xinjiang, will be completed and put into operation in 2020, according to the region's development and reform commission.

The plant will be 70 kilometers from downtown Fukang and 130 km from Xinjiang's electric load center of Urumqi, with lower and higher elevation reservoirs located along the main stream of the Baying River.

Four reversible turbine/generator assemblies each with a 300,000-KW capacity will be erected with the first one to be in service in 2019. The total cost of the plant is 8.37 billion yuan ($1.28 billion).

At times of low electrical demand, a pumped-storage hydroelectricity plant pumps water from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation, while during periods of high electrical demand, the stored water is released to produce electric power.

Low-cost off-peak electric power is used to run the pumps, and the system increases revenue by selling more electricity during periods of peak demand, at higher prices. The technique also regulates frequency and voltage, especially in emergencies, and increases the efficiency of thermal and nuclear power plants.

Edited by Peter Nordlinger