Hami 50 MW CSP IMAGE ©CSTA
Source: CSPPlaza
On May 19th, the Hami Molten Salt Tower 50MW CSP Project generated 1,167.6 MWh in a single day, its all-time highest since commencing operation, according to offtaker Shenergy Power. China Solar Thermal Alliance had noted a previous one-day record of 1.0315 MWh in 2024.
Hami was an early adopter of the SolarPACES Technology Award-winning Stellio heliostat invented by sbp Sonne.
The project in Hami was one of China’s first batch of national solar thermal demonstration projects, developed by Energy China and the only one among China’s pilot program in Xinjiang Province. Since China’s pilot program concluded, Xinjiang now hosts five more operating CSP plants, and another seven are under construction as of 2026.
Hami’s single day generation record is partly enabled by its unusually high ratio of storage capacityfor a 50 MW CSP project. Hami has 13 hours of molten salt thermal storage, which is quite substantial. Many 100 MW CSP projects have just 8 or 10 hours. That also explains why the plant can supply energy to the grid for up to 22 hours, and why it achieved the record daily output of 1,167,600 kWh. The Hami plant has been generating about 200 GWh/year, very much at the high end, implying a capacity factor of 46%. CSP capacity factors typically range between 35-45%.
According to CSPPlaza, its generation has been breaking successive new records over the previous years, attributed to continuous improvements in equipment stability through a series of measures including domestic component substitution, equipment technical upgrades, and innovations in its production management system.
Hami broke ground in October 2017, completed initial grid connection in 2019, trial operation, and acceptance testing in 2021, and formally entered its operational period in April 2022.
The project is the first CSP plant that China Energy Engineering Corp (CEEC) (known as Energy China), independently invested in, designed, built, and operates. It was funded by China Energy Engineering Group Investment, constructed by ChinaPower Hami Solar Thermal Power and general-contracted by Northwest Electric Power Design Institute (NEPDI) which is part of China Power Engineering Consulting Group). Dongfang Boiler and Dongfang Turbine were responsible for the design and supply of key equipment including the heliostat field, receiver, evaporator, and steam turbine.
