Tongshan Pumped Storage Station in Hubei Diverts Lower Reservoir
On October 21, the lower reservoir of the Tongshan (Damushan) pumped storage power station in Tongshan County, Xianning, Hubei Province, was successfully diverted. Developed by State Grid Xinyuan, the station is a key project under China's 14th Five-Year Plan for pumped storage, with an installed capacity of 1.4 GW through four 350 MW units, annual generation of 1.56 TWh and total investment of CNY 9.384 billion. Main works started in May 2026 and the plant is expected to be completed in 2030. Once operational, its double regulation capacity will reach 2.8 GW, close to 20% of the maximum peak-valley difference of the Hubei grid, and it will provide peak shaving, valley filling, frequency and voltage regulation and emergency reserve services for the provincial network.
Ventilation Tunnel of Jilin Jingyu Pumped Storage Station Breaks Through
On October 22, the 1,299.54-metre ventilation tunnel of Huadian's Jingyu pumped storage station in Jilin Province broke through, clearing the way for excavation of the underground powerhouse and moving the project from preparatory works into main construction. A key energy project of China's 14th Five-Year Plan, it is Huadian's first pumped storage plant in northeast China, with 1.8 GW of installed capacity and total investment of CNY 11.689 billion. Once complete it will handle peak shaving, valley filling, storage, frequency regulation and emergency reserve for the Jilin grid, strengthening renewable energy absorption across northeast China.
EPC Awarded for Core Transmission Works of Ulanqab 1,500 MW Wind-Solar-Storage Base
On October 19, the EPC contract for the core transmission and transformation works of the 1,500 MW Ulanqab Jingda wind-solar-thermal-storage integration base was announced, with a consortium of Southwest Electric Power Design Institute and PowerChina Chongqing Engineering winning with a bid of CNY 589 million. The base combines 1,200 MW of wind with 300 MW of solar, backed by 225 MW / 900 MWh of energy storage. It will build three 220 kV booster stations, a 500 kV collection station and three 220 kV lines feeding the West Inner Mongolia grid, with full-capacity grid connection targeted for the end of 2027.
Gansu Jinchang's First Large Grid-Side Independent Storage Project Connects to Grid
On October 25, the Guozong Zhongsheng 200 MW / 800 MWh independent energy storage station was connected to the grid in Jinchang, Gansu Province, the city's first large grid-side independent storage project. With total investment of about CNY 780 million, the plant uses lithium iron phosphate batteries and a 330 kV booster station, and was built and commissioned in only 100 days. It will help absorb about 210 million kWh of renewable energy each year and provide flexibility support for the gigawatt-scale renewable energy base in the Hexi Corridor.
Engie Starts Construction on Its First Co-Located Solar-Plus-Storage Project in France
Engie has started construction of Parc du Buisson, its first co-located solar and battery storage project in France, sited on a former quarry in Saint-Jean-Froidmentel in the Centre-Val de Loire region. The 29.8 MWp PV plant, using nearly 46,000 modules across about 23 hectares, will share grid infrastructure with an 8.8 MW / 20 MWh battery, including an approximately 11-kilometre connection to a substation. Grid connection is expected in summer 2027, with full commercial operation targeted for December 2027. The battery will store electricity during periods of high solar output and discharge during peak demand. Engie's global storage portfolio in operation and under construction has reached 10.7 GW.
Uruguay to Tender 99 MW of Solar With 20-Year PPAs
Uruguay's state utility UTE has published preliminary terms for a 99 MW solar tender covering three independent projects of 33 MW of grid capacity each, backed by 20-year power purchase agreements priced at the bid level for the first 15 years and at 40% of the bid for the final five. Tender documents will be released on October 28 and bids opened at the end of January 2027, with the plants required to be built within two years and only PV technology allowed. The tender forms part of Uruguay's plan to add about 500 MW of solar capacity during the current five-year period.
Algeria Inaugurates Its Largest Solar Plant, the 300 MWp Al-Fouliya
On October 26, Algeria's energy minister inaugurated the 300 MWp Al-Fouliya solar plant in Guemar, El Oued Province, the largest operating PV plant in the country to date. Owned by state utility Sonelgaz, it is the third utility-scale solar plant commissioned in Algeria this year, after the 200 MW Tendla and 200 MW El Ghrous projects, bringing 2026 additions to about 700 MW, more than the country's entire 437 MW of installed PV at the end of 2025. The plants form the first 3.2 GW, 21-plant phase of the national renewable energy programme, which targets 15 GW of solar by 2035 to cut gas consumption in power generation.
AMEA Power's 24 MWp Ituka Solar Plant in Uganda Enters Commercial Operation
AMEA Power has begun commercial operations at the 24 MWp (20 MW) Ituka solar plant in Madi Okollo District, north-western Uganda, one of the first utility-scale, grid-connected PV facilities in the West Nile region. Financed with an US$18 million senior secured loan from the Emerging Africa and Asia Infrastructure Fund, the project includes a 25 MVA 132/33 kV substation feeding directly into the national grid and can supply up to 390,000 people. It helps offset seasonal swings in hydropower, which accounts for about 80% of Uganda's grid capacity, and supports the country's goal of universal energy access by 2040.
Slovenia's Brezice Hydropower Plant PV Expansion Creates Country's Largest Solar Complex
Slovenian state-owned HESS has inaugurated two PV units totalling 9.34 MW of peak capacity (FEBR-D1 and D2) beside its Brezice run-of-river hydropower plant, which together with the 6 MW D3 unit commissioned in 2023 form the largest solar complex and hybrid power plant in Slovenia. The new units occupy 9.4 hectares of sediment deposits and use 14,952 bifacial modules; Croatian contractor Koncar built the EUR 4 million investment in 14 months. Annual output of the new segments is estimated at 10.5 GWh, taking the 15.3 MW complex to about 17.4 GWh. Coupling solar with the reservoir allows the plant to save water for peak-demand hours.
R.Power's 20 MWp Kloetze Solar Farm in Germany to Be Energised by End-November
Polish developer R.Power is completing its 20 MWp Kloetze solar project in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, with grid energisation scheduled before the end of November 2026. Announced on October 22, the plant is expected to generate about 20 GWh of electricity annually and secured a 20-year support agreement under Germany's Renewable Energy Sources Act auction mechanism, with financing arranged by Deutsche Leasing Finance in January 2026. Kloetze is R.Power's first large-scale PV development in Germany; the company has secured further auction contracts for about 115 MW of solar and battery projects and holds a German development pipeline exceeding 2 GW.
Marinus Link Interconnector Between Tasmania and Victoria Begins Main Construction
Major construction has started on the Marinus Link interconnector between Tasmania and Victoria. Stage 1 is a 750 MW, 345-kilometre high-voltage direct current link running 255 kilometres under Bass Strait from Heybridge in Tasmania to Waratah Bay in Victoria, then 90 kilometres underground to the Latrobe Valley. The project, worth more than AUD 5 billion, includes about 240 kilometres of new and upgraded transmission lines in north-west Tasmania and is backed by an AUD 3.8 billion commitment from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation. Scheduled for completion in late 2030, it will provide 50% more transfer capacity than the existing Basslink and is forecast to cut Victorian wholesale electricity prices by up to AUD 17/MWh.
India's Serentica Commissions First Phase of 1 GWh Battery Storage in Bikaner
Serentica Renewables, the renewable energy arm of Vedanta Group, has commissioned the first 200 MWh phase of its 1 GWh battery energy storage system in Bikaner, Rajasthan, marking its entry into utility-scale storage for the commercial and industrial segment. The modular system stores surplus solar generation during the day and discharges it during peak hours, underpinning one of the world's first time-block round-the-clock renewable power arrangements for industrial consumers and strengthening grid stability. Serentica plans a battery order pipeline of about 7 GWh over the next two years as it builds one of India's largest storage portfolios for the C&I segment.
Serbia Advances 660 MW Bistrica Pumped Storage Plant, Its First in Four Decades
Serbia's state utility EPS said on October 24 that it has filed about 250 requests for permit conditions over the past six months for the roughly 660 MW Bistrica pumped storage plant, with a construction permit expected next year and a tender for the main works to follow. Located between the Uvac and Lim rivers, the plant will use a new Klak dam and a reservoir holding 108 million cubic metres as its upper reservoir and the existing Potpec lake as the lower reservoir, generating about 1,600 GWh a year. It is Serbia's first new pumped storage plant in more than four decades and the largest new capacity EPS is planning.