Green Energy “Super Power Bank” Takes Shape: World’s Largest Hybrid Pumped‑Storage Power Station Marks Two Major Breakthroughs

On February 22, 2026, the Yalong River Lianghekou Pumped‑Storage Power Station in Yajiang County, Sichuan Province, China, identified as the world’s largest hybrid pumped‑storage power station under construction, achieved two critical construction milestones: completion of the underground powerhouse excavation and initiation of concrete pouring at the downstream reservoir dam. These breakthroughs mark significant progress in the project’s development.

Situated on the Western Sichuan Plateau at an elevation of about 3,000 meters above sea level, the project benefits from favorable dry season conditions that enabled around 1,000 construction workers to maintain round‑the‑clock operations during the Chinese New Year period, accelerating progress on core components such as underground chambers and water diversion tunnels.

The underground powerhouse, described as the “heart” of the station, is buried approximately 500 meters below ground, with dimensions of nearly 200 meters in length and 60 meters in height, and reaches a maximum depth of 650 meters.

The Lianghekou Pumped‑Storage Station will install four reversible generating units each with 300,000 kilowatts (kW) of capacity, totaling 1,200,000 kW of pumped‑storage capacity. When combined with the existing Lianghekou Hydropower Station’s 3,000,000 kW conventional generating capacity, the total installed capacity for the integrated facility will reach 4,200,000 kW. This hybrid configuration enables both natural run‑of‑river generation and pumped‑storage regulation functions.

Once complete, the hybrid station is expected to significantly support China’s clean energy power supply and grid regulation, contributing an estimated 1,400,000,000 kilowatt‑hours (kWh) of annual clean electricity generation capacity.

Source: CCTV