China’s Largest Wind Power Energy Storage Project Approved for Grid Connection

On August 27, 2020, the Huaneng Mengcheng wind power 40MW/40MWh energy storage project was approved for grid connection by State Grid Anhui Electric Power Co., LTD. Project engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) was provided by Nanjing NR Electric Co., Ltd., while the project’s container energy storage battery system was supplied by Gotion High-tech. This project is currently the largest combined wind power and energy storage project in China.

The Inland Plain Wind Farm Project in Mengcheng County is owned by the Anhui Branch of Huaneng International. The project has a total installed capacity of 200MW, with a paired energy storage capacity of 20% and duration of one hour. The energy storage system construction is divided into two phases. Phase one is the 150MW Xiaojian project, while phase two is the 50MW Xutuan project. In May 2020, the project EPC bidding results were revealed. NR Electric Co., Ltd. was awarded the phase one project with a bid of 52,794,970 RMB, and additionally awarded the phase two project with a 19,794,775 RMB bid. The systems were delivered in less than 3 months.

The control system of the energy storage station adopts the IEC-61850 standard specification, achieving fast power control function through a unified hardware and software platform consisting of a coordinated control system and converter group. Primary frequency control and voltage control response speed is less than 30ms. The project realizes the stable, transient, and urgent multi-dimensional composite control function of energy storage in renewable energy applications for the first time in China, maximizes the application value of energy storage in renewable energy scenarios, and provides demonstration of the multiple functions of energy storage for renewable energy projects.

Guiding Opinions on "Integration of Wind-Solar-Hydro-Thermal-Storage" and "Integration of Generation-Grid-Load-Storage" (Draft for Comments)

On August 27, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration issued a notice soliciting opinions on “National Development and Reform Commission & National Energy Administration Guiding Opinions on Developing ‘Wind, Solar, Hydro, Thermal, and Storage Integration’ and ‘Generation, Grid, Load, and Storage Integration’ (Draft for Comment).” The announcement states that “wind, solar, hydro, thermal, and storage integration” should focus on the development of power supply bases which combine local resources and energy characteristics. These bases should adopt wind, solar, hydropower, coal, and other energy sources to supplement each other according to local conditions, along with an  appropriate proportion of energy storage. The planning, design, construction, and operation of various power sources should be coordinated in order to explore “wind, solar, and storage integration” and develop such integration in a manner suited to regional conditions.

Understanding the Goals of the First Batch of National Energy Administration Energy Storage Demonstration Projects

Since the release of the “Guiding Opinions on Promoting Energy Storage Technology and Industry Development” in 2017, China's energy storage industry has been developing rapidly. After more than two years of preparation and planning, the National Energy Administration officially solicited the first batch of energy storage demonstration projects in China on July 17 of this year. The organization and selection of this batch of energy storage demonstration projects will help to analyze and summarize successful experiences and existing problems, promote the integrated innovation of advanced energy storage technologies, equipment, and systems, established and improved relevant technical standards and engineering norms, cultivate business models with market competitiveness, and promoted the introduction of relevant policies and regulations in support of the development of energy storage. 

As a supporting organization of the National Energy Administration, China Energy Storage Alliance (CNESA) has been participating in a variety of works in support of the demonstration project, assisting in organizing industry experts and upstream and downstream enterprises to share their opinions and participate in discussions. Key indicators for the energy storage demonstration projects include:

1.       Demonstration projects should reflect advanced technologies and independent innovation

Screening indicators include equipment lifecycle, conversion efficiency, system performance, system reliability, project layout, environmental protection, etc. Declared projects should reflect independent innovation and encourage the use of original technologies with independent intellectual property rights. Screening indicators include the level of autonomy of core technologies and equipment, whether there are significant original technologies, and whether there are relevant patents and software copyrights.

2.       Demonstration projects must consider safety precautions

To avoid hidden dangers and risks in energy storage system integration and equipment operations, a detailed product inspection report is needed to illustrate whether the energy storage components and related electrical equipment can meet relevant national or trade standards. Projects need to ensure that the system is matching the application procedures and grading of information safety, emergency response planning, monitoring facilities, fire warning system, firefighting system, etc., and should consider how to deal with extreme weather and power system risks.

3.       Demonstration projects should reflect the comprehensive benefits of energy storage

In addition to demonstrating technological innovations, demonstration projects also need to carry out quantitative and qualitative evaluation of comprehensive benefits under specific application scenarios. First, the project must be systematically analyzed from the perspective of full life cycle management, and a reasonable resource recycling plan must be designed. All kinds of project costs should be fully considered in terms of construction, operation and maintenance, as well as all kinds of non-technical costs, reflecting the real situation of the industry. Second, analysis must be conducted on the efficient utilization of clean energy and the comprehensive benefit of energy storage under specific application scenarios. In the process of expounding the comprehensive economic benefits of the project, quantitative or qualitative judgment is also needed, and corresponding supporting basis should be provided.

4.       The economic indicators of the demonstration projects need to be fully assessed

Low economic value is a common phenomenon in current energy storage projects. In the process of evaluating the economic index of the project, on the one hand, it should be evaluated whether the demonstration project can break through the market mechanism bottleneck through innovative models or regional policies adapted to local conditions, and effectively explore the establishment of a long-term mechanism of industry development. On the other hand, it is also necessary that through the application of advanced technologies, the demonstration project can provide feedback for the implementation of local supporting electricity markets and ancillary power service policies.

Construction Begins on “Salt Cave Compressed Air Energy Storage National Test and Demonstration Project”

On August 18, the main construction of the "Salt Cave Compressed Air Energy Storage National Test and Demonstration Project" begin in Xuebu town, marking the project’s entrance into the critical period of construction. The Jintan salt cave CAES project is a first-phase project with planned installed power generation capacity of 60MW and energy storage capacity of 300MWh.

The non-afterburning compressed air energy storage power generation technology possesses advantages such as large capacity, long life cycle, low cost, and fast response speed.  The project makes full use of underground salt cavity resources with compressed air as the main medium. This new type of energy storage technology helps save land resources, is environmentally friendly, and provides efficient peak shaving, among other advantages. The completed project will help to solve the problem of wind and solar curtailment, alleviate the current challenge of energy shortage in Jiangsu province, and promote the commercial development process of advanced technologies and equipment in the domestic energy storage industry.

As Solar+Energy Storage Becomes a Leading Trend, what is the Best Configuration to Maximize Benefit?

Energy storage has become a hot topic in the energy field. More than 10 provinces, include Shandong, Shanxi, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Anhui, and Tibet, have released policies to encourage energy storage applications in solar stations and wind farms. Energy storage has been recognized as a key technology to solve the intermittency and volatility of renewable energy, promote renewable penetration, and reduce wind and solar curtailment.  Opportunities for energy storage increase as the era of solar price parity comes closer.

In order to generate sustainable profits, more effort is required in solar+energy storage technology integration, system efficiency, and security. Currently in China, system integrators for solar+energy storage project are still very rare. Combining solar generation with battery storage is not simply a matter of combining equipment, rather, the integrator must solve hardware and software interface compatibility problems between different devices. System security management is also a key issue. A complete system protection design is needed which can provide system monitoring, risk pre-alert, and provide relative protection. 

Energy Storage System for Frequency Regulation at Hengyi Power Plant Begins Operation

After several months of installation, commissioning, and grid connection test, the Foshan Hengyi Power plant 20MW/10MWh frequency regulation project has passed the trial operation stage and began official operations on July 21, 2020. The project’s energy storage system has been provided by Tianjin Lishen Battery Co.

Project investment was provided by Guangdong Guangte Electric and system integration delivered by Guangdong Power Research Institute Energy Technology Co., LTD. The project is a large-scale energy storage system bundled with coal generation to provide frequency regulation services, which can significantly improve the flexibility of power grid dispatch, enhance the reliability and safety of power grid operations, and reduce wear to thermal power units.  Successful operation of the project can not only greatly improve the AGC regulating performance of the coal generator, providing high quality and efficient frequency regulation service for the grid, but also generate additional frequency regulation compensation income for Hengyi power plant.

SPECO Unveils Next-generation Mobile Energy Storage System

On April 18, SPECO unveiled a new, first-of-its kind mobile (vehicular) energy storage system for China.  The device was unveiled and put into use at the 70th anniversary of the People’s Liberation Army Navy celebrations in Qingdao.  The system can provide a variety of services, such as load shifting, emergency power supply, backup power, smart charging, mobile rescue services, and more.  The unit can be used in disaster situations such as earthquakes and avalanches, provide power for large public events, or provide backup power to data centers, hospitals, airports, and other facilities. It can also provide islands, mountainous regions, and commercial areas with load shifting capabilities, be used for electric vehicle charging in cities, or even provide power during infrastructure repairs.

China’s First Sodium Nickel Battery Trial Project Begins Operations in Zhejiang

On April 1, 2019, a China Telecom energy storage system located at a monitoring station in Jianggan District, Hangzhou became the receiver of China’s first sodium nickel battery. The battery system is provided by Zhejiang AM Power, a joint venture between Chilwee Group and GE.

Sodium Nickel batteries are a high temperature sodium battery.  Advantages are its relative safety, environmental friendliness, long life cycle, and cheap manufacturing cost.  The batteries pose no risk of catching fire or exploding, can operate in temperatures as low as -40 degrees Celsius and as high as 65 degrees Celsius, and have life cycles typically two to five times that of Li-ion batteries.

CATL Forms Partnership with KSTAR

KSTAR and CATL have contributed 102 million RMB and 98 million RMB, respectively, to form a joint venture.  CATL will hold 51% stake in the venture, while KSTAR will hold the remaining 49%.  The venture will focus on energy storage system PCS, battery packs (including UPS-integrated Li-ion battery packs, residential energy storage battery packs, and packs for small-to-medium Li-ion batteries of nonstandard size), as well charging stations and “solar+storage+charging” integrated products.

KSTAR was founded in 1993.  The company researches, manufactures, and provides integrated solutions in a variety of product areas, including key data center infrastructure, solar PV generation systems, energy storage systems, and electric vehicle charging.

500MWh Li-ion Battery Energy Storage Project Planned for Putian, Fujian Province

The Xiuyu district government of Putian City plans to invest over 1 billion RMB in a project which will consist of a large-scale Li-ion battery energy storage station.  The project has been divided into two stages, the first of which consist of one 100MWh Li-ion battery energy storage center, 4-6 EV charging stations, and 10 containerized mobile battery power supplies.  The second phase of the project will expand the capacity by an additional 400 MWh, 4 additional EV charging stations, and 20 additional containerized mobile battery power supplies.

First Stage of Vanadium Flow Battery Storage+Solar Project in Zaoyang, Hubei Goes into Operation

On January 5, developer Pingfan Ruifeng of Zaoyang, Hubei put into operation the first stage of its combined 10MW solar PV+10MW/40MWh vanadium flow battery storage project.  The first stage totals 3MW solar PV+3MW/12MWh of storage.  Pingfan Ruifeng has led the project as investor, while Beijing NEGO leads systems integration and has provided the majority of systems equipment aside from the vanadium flow battery, which has been supplied by VRB Energy.  The project is currently China’s largest solar PV+vanadium flow battery project and will provide such services as increased efficiency of solar energy usage, load shifting, smart energy distribution, grid stability, and more.

Guizhou Province Development and Reform Commission Releases Guidelines for Innovation and Improvement in Green Development

In January 2019, the Guizhou Development and Reform Commission released Guizhou Development and Reform Commission Suggestions for the Implementation of Greater Innovation and Improvement of Green Energy Price Mechanisms (贵州省发展和改革委员会关于创新和完善促进绿色发展价格机制的实施意见). The goal of the guidelines is to develop a price mechanism and price policy system by 2020 that will benefit green, low carbon development and the conservation of resources.  By 2025, the price mechanism should be nearly fully completed and implemented over the entire province.  Some of the main goals of the suggestions include: 1) innovation and development in policies related to water treatment payments; 2) the creation of a payment mechanism for treatment of solid waste; 3) the creation of a price mechanism for the benefit of water conservation; 4) innovation and development of electricity price mechanisms that are environmentally friendly and conservation-minded.