On May 15, BCMC and Jinta Zhongguang Solar Power Generation Co., Ltd. signed the EPC contract for a molten salt storage tank for the 100,000-kilowatt solar thermal power generation project in Jinta County, Gansu Province. It is also the ninth project for BCMC to participate in solar thermal power generation.

With a total installed capacity of 700,000 kilowatts, the Jinta project has adopted the “solar thermal plus” model, generating 100,000 kilowatts from the solar thermal sector and 600,000 kilowatts from the PV sector. The annual power generation capacity is 1.37 billion kilowatt-hours. By employing tower-type molten salt solar thermal power generation technology, the solar thermal part is equipped with a 9-hour molten salt energy storage system.

In the integrated project featuring solar thermal and PV, solar thermal power generation and fluctuating power sources like PV complement each other. The solar thermal power generation system plays a vital role in energy storage, frequency regulation and peak adjustment, which can facilitate smooth and controllable power generation output while ensuring the reduction of PV abandonment rate. In the meantime, this model can demonstrate the low-cost advantage of PV, fill the power supply gap of PV power generation during peak power consumption, and improve energy utilization efficiency and economic benefits.

The molten salt energy storage system, one of the key units of solar thermal power generation, can make the power plant continuously and steadily generate power regardless of the environment. The system can overcome the abandonment of wind and PV that exists in the new energy technology. Relying on the technical foundation for special equipment over the past years, BCMC has been conducting the R&D of core processes and key equipment in the molten salt energy storage. In view of the complex system, high temperature, high corrosiveness, large capacity, abnormally harsh operating conditions and no standards or specifications at home and abroad, BCMC has carried out basic structure innovation, new structures for key equipment, simulation design and calculation, and experimental verification, solving the technical problems and developing multiple proprietary technologies. In particular, BCMC's proprietary anti-settlement foundation technology means that the insulation part inside the foundation is made of special materials with good insulation and compression resistance, which can avoid uneven settlement and provide better support for the tank.

Previously, BCMC also provided the manufacturing, installation and construction tasks of the energy storage system for the 100 MW tower-type molten salt project under the phase-I part of the 950 MW solar thermal-PV power project in Dubai. It is the world’s largest and most technologically advanced tower-type solar thermal power generation project. Also, it is a key project along the Belt and Road routes. This marks that the technology has reached a world-class level, with relevant products and technologies entering the international market.

In the domestic environment of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, the solar thermal power generation technology will rely on the advantages of energy storage and usher in new development opportunities. The Jinta 100,000-kilowatt solar thermal power generation project has kicked off. In such a general trend, BCMC will continue to take advantage of technology R&D to provide customers with technologically advanced, high-quality products and quality engineering services.