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China Launches World s Largest Liquid-Air Energy Storage Project
China has connected the world s largest liquid-air energy storage facility to the power grid, marking a significant step toward overcoming one of renewable energy s biggest challenges: storing electri
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China has connected the world’s largest liquid-air energy storage facility to the power grid, marking a significant step toward overcoming one of renewable energy’s biggest challenges: storing electricity for use when the sun is not shining and the wind is not blowing.
The 60-megawatt facility, located in Golmud City in northwest China’s Qinghai Province, officially connected to the grid on October 30, 2026. With a storage capacity of 600 megawatt-hours, the installation can deliver electricity continuously for up to ten hours.
Unlike conventional lithium-ion batteries, the system uses ordinary atmospheric air to store energy. Surplus electricity from renewable sources is used to cool air to approximately minus 194 degrees Celsius, transforming it into a liquid that can be stored in insulated tanks. When electricity is needed, the liquid air is warmed, expands rapidly, and drives turbines to generate power.
The project, developed by China Green Development Investment Group in collaboration with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is designed to absorb approximately 600,000 kilowatt-hours of renewable energy daily and deliver an estimated 180 million kilowatt-hours annually. It is also associated with a 250-megawatt solar power installation.
One of the technology’s main advantages is its ability to store large quantities of energy without relying on lithium, cobalt, or other critical battery minerals. Unlike some compressed-air storage systems, it does not require underground geological formations, potentially allowing installations in a wider range of locations.
Although questions remain about its overall efficiency, construction costs, and long-term commercial competitiveness, the Golmud facility represents an important demonstration of large-scale, long-duration energy storage.
As countries expand solar and wind generation, the challenge is no longer simply how to produce clean electricity, but how to make it available whenever it is needed.
China’s new liquid-air facility offers another potential pathway toward an energy system less dependent on fossil fuels, while opening possibilities for renewable-energy development in regions where conventional storage solutions may be difficult or expensive to implement.
Sources: Golmud Municipal Government; Science and Technology Daily; PowerChina, October–November 2026.