CGN launches 150 MW hybrid solar-thermal plant with molten salt storage in Tibet

China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) has connected a 150 MW hybrid solar-thermal demonstration complex to the public grid in Gar County, Ngari Prefecture, Tibet, chip.pl reported. Located at an average altitude of 4,300 meters above sea level, the installation is the world's highest commercial solar-thermal power facility chip.plchip.plchip.plOpen source ↗. The project combines a 100 MW photovoltaic unit with molten-salt thermal storage that feeds a 50 MW steam-turbine generator. Once fully operational, the plant is expected to produce roughly 270 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year and prevent nearly 168,200 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, having employed over 500 local farmers and herders during construction.

Molten salt storage design

The facility addresses the intermittent nature of solar output highlighted by the International Energy Agency's SolarPACES analyses. Instead of direct grid feeding alone, surplus power from the 100 MW photovoltaic arrays powers electric heaters to store energy inside a molten-salt reservoir. When electricity demand peaks or sunlight fades, the stored thermal energy supplies a steam generator that drives a 50 MW turbine. Operating molten-salt transfer systems above 4,000 meters required specific engineering adjustments to handle low air density, sub-zero ambient temperatures, heavy winds, oxygen deficiency, and sharp diurnal temperature variations, which shortened standard construction cycles and risked pipe freezing.

Tower CSP alternative in Amdo

The Tibetan plateau is hosting another technical pathway for dispatchable solar capacity. In Amdo County, at an elevation surpassing 4,650 meters, Xizang Development Investment Group is constructing a 100 MW concentrated solar power (CSP) tower system. Rather than relying on photovoltaic arrays, the Amdo setup utilizes a field of 15,927 heliostats covering more than 800,000 square meters. These mirrors focus direct optical radiation onto a central receiver tower, heating molten salt directly to approximately 560 degrees Celsius. Fitted with an eight-hour thermal buffer, that system is planned to deliver 260 million kilowatt-hours annually.