Hydropower plant plus energy storage
The production and consumption of electricity do not always run together concurrently. Both in industrial nations as well as in developing countries with a rising need for energy, there are daily fluctuations in the electricity grid. Pumped storage power plants are ideally suited worldwide in helping to even out these frequent changes between electricity shortages and surpluses.
Reliable and quick
As opposed to thermal power stations, pumped storage power plants are able to react in the shortest possible time to network fluctuations, by generating the required electricity or by absorbing any excess. Modern systems need just thirty seconds to start the pumps or turbines up from a standstill. In the event of a power failure, pumped storage power plants can re-establish the power supply to the network without an external energy supply.
A pioneer in renewable energy
The highest installed capacity of pumped storage power plants can be found in the USA, China, Japan and Western Europe. More and more countries around the globe are turning to the potential of pumped storage power plants as they prepare the way for increased use of renewable energy. Wind and solar power plants are subject to strong natural fluctuations. They cannot always provide electricity in the required amounts or at the desired time. Excess energy thus needs to be stored so that it can be made available at any time. With the current state of technology, there is only one possibility for achieving this in an economically viable, large-scale way: with the help of pumped storage plants. This means that the demand for pumped storage power plants will continue to grow worldwide.
Voith has over one hundred years of experience with pumped storage plants, and supplies the most modern and efficient plants in the world.