To guarantee the stability of electrical networks, it’s becoming increasingly important to manage the balance between energy production and consumption levels.
Pumped-storage hydroelectricity is the only economical, flexible way of storing large amounts of energy, giving power plants the versatility needed to manage the balancing act between production and consumption.
Hydro pumped storage power plant
In a pumped-storage plant, pump turbines transfer water to a high storage reservoir during off-peak hours. The stored water can later be used to generate electricity to cover temporary peaks in demand from consumers or unplanned outages at other power plants.
The energy used for pumping the water comes from other energy sources, including nuclear, fossil and intermittent renewables, that are less efficient to adapt to load fluctuations.