China's Newest Power Plant Swaps Steam for Supercritical CO2

China recently initiated construction on a groundbreaking hybrid power plant intended to store energy as molten salt and generate electricity during peak demand using supercritical carbon dioxide. The project, located in Shandong province, aims to minimize energy waste and stabilize the local grid. With a 50 megawatt supercritical unit and a 100 megawatt molten salt storage system, the facility will be the world's first of its kind upon completion next year.

Built on the former site of the Bajiao coal-fired power station in Yantai, the new system captures surplus energy and stores it as thermal energy in a molten salt reactor, which then powers a supercritical unit utilizing carbon dioxide to spin a turbine and produce electricity through a closed-loop system. Supercritical carbon dioxide systems offer advantages such as smaller size, no need for water, higher efficiency, reduced carbon emissions, and greater adjustability compared to traditional power plants.

The Ruitan demonstration project exemplifies China's rapid advancement in cutting-edge clean energy technologies, with the nation now leading the global renewable energy sector in patent applications and research. China's aggressive approach to energy investment, which exceeded the rest of the world's combined spending from 2019 to 2025, has solidified its status as the world's first "electrostate" and given it significant influence in global clean energy markets.

While the Ruitan project does not directly compete with battery storage, it represents one aspect of China's all-encompassing energy tech strategy, contributing to its projected global energy dominance.