Qinghai's market-oriented grid connection project in 2021: 42.13GW new energy equipped with energy storage 5.2GW

On June 11, Qinghai Energy Bureau issued the Notice on Matters Related to the Development and Construction of Market-oriented Grid Connection Projects in 2021, which made it clear that the projects suitable for the market-oriented grid connection construction in Qinghai were mainly the integration of power, grid, load and storage and multi-energy complementary projects. According to the document, on this basis, considering factors such as the maturity of construction conditions, the possibility of load landing, the proportion of energy storage allocation and the comprehensive capability of enterprises, 20 key projects for the first market-oriented grid connection in 2021 were selected and subsequently implemented by the municipal Development and Reform Commission (Energy Bureau) to carry out dynamic management of key projects. The other projects which have high feasibility and good implementation can be timely updated into the list to rolling revise.

According to the document, for the projects that have implemented the conditions of market-oriented grid connection and have signed an agreement with the Qinghai Power Corporation, they should be put on record or approved according to the government approved investment project catalogue in accordance with the principle of "the approval following the report", and the validity period of photovoltaic and wind power projects should be defined. For projects without substantial construction of energy storage and adjustable supporting works within one year, the filing and approval documents shall be annulled, and losses shall be borne by the enterprises themselves. According to the list, Qinghai will focuses on promoting 20 first market-oriented grid connection projects in 2021, with a total power supply scale of 42.13GW and energy storage scale of about 5.2GW.

In terms of energy storage configuration, electrochemical energy storage is the mainstream configuration mode. Some projects also involve photothermal, electric mine card electrical changing station, compressed air energy storage and other forms. Among them, the proportion of energy storage in most projects is 10% and 2 hours. However, there are also high-proportion projects, such as the energy storage ratio of the project of Jingneng reached about 63%, and the energy storage ratio of the project of National Power Investment Corporation and China National Energy Construction Corporation reached about 30%.

In addition, of the above 20 projects, 12 projects are marked with specific load projects, most of which are in the form of clean heating, equipment manufacturing, data center, etc. In addition, Trina Solar Energy is the only private enterprise to enter the project list. It has jointly developed a 1GW complementary integration project of wind-polar storage + wind prevention and sand fixation with the National Energy Group.

Zhejiang Started the Third Party Independent Subject to Participate Electricity Ancillary Service

On May 20, Zhejiang Energy Regulatory Office issued the Transaction Rules for the Participation of the Third Party Independent Subject in the electricity ancillary service in Zhejiang Province (Trial) (Draft for Comment), which proposed to make full use of the multi-fusion and flexible power grid to promote the integration of "power, grid, load and storage". According to the principle of "who benefits, who assumes", fully excavate the third-party independent subjects including electric energy storage devices, electric vehicles (chargers), load-side control resources, load aggregators, virtual power plants, pumped storage power stations and others to participate in the electricity ancillary service, so as to improve the safe and stable operation level of Zhejiang power grid and promote the consumption of clean energy such as wind power, photovoltaic and nuclear power.

The third party independent subjects can participate in the market independently as the operating subjects, or participate in the market on behalf of the resources of the subordinate units through the way of aggregation. The power generation side energy storage devices can participate in the market independently or by their power generation enterprises as agents. Virtual power plants can aggregate different types of resources, and at the initial stage, the resources aggregated by the same unit should be of the same type in principle.

[Basic technical parameters of the third party independent subject] (I) When participating in the peak shaving ancillary service transaction, the adjusting capacity shall not be less than 2.5MWh, the adjusting power shall not be less than 5MW, and the continuous response time shall not be less than 1 hour; (II) When participating in the spinning reserve ancillary service, the adjusting capacity shall not be less than 1MWh, the adjusting power shall not be less than 1MW, and the continuous response time shall not be less than 1 hour; (III) When participating in frequency regulation ancillary services, the rated charging/discharging power shall not be less than 5MW and the continuous response time shall not be less than 2 hours.

[Ceiling Price] Price ceiling for ancillary services: During the low load period, peak cut will be RMB 400 / MW/h. During the peak load period, peak cut will be RMB 500 / MW/h. Peak cut and adjustment will be RMB 500 / MW/h, spinning reserve will be RMB 15 / MW/h, primary frequency regulation will be RMB 120 / MW/h, and secondary frequency regulation will be RMB 60 / MW/h, which will be adjusted timely according to market operation.

[Expense Sharing] The cost of ancillary services provided by the third party independent subject shall be apportioned between the power generation side and the market users, and shall be listed in the ancillary service cost of the settlement bill. Market users shall apportion the ancillary service fees according to the proportion of their actual electricity consumption to the total social electricity consumption in the current month and multiplied by the apportionment coefficient ku (temporarily 0.5). The remaining expenses shall be included in the power generation side, the apportionment shall be made according to the "Two Detailed Rules" in East China.

Source: https://zjb.nea.gov.cn/u/cms/www/202105/201114503vh0.pdf

China Southern Power Grid Issued a White Paper on New Power System Action Plan

On May 15, China Southern Power Grid released the white paper of action plan of China Southern Power Grid for the construction of new power system (2021-2030) (hereinafter referred to as "white paper") in Guangzhou, and held an expert seminar on digital grid to promote the construction of new power system. According to the white paper, China Southern Power Grid will accelerate the digital transformation, enhance the support capacity of digital technology platform and the operation capacity of digital power grid, select the regional power grid with a high proportion of new energy access, build the digital power grid to carry the leading demonstration area of new power system, and comprehensively build a safe, reliable, green, efficient and intelligent modern power grid. Build a new power system with renewable energy as the main source to ensure the security and stability of power grid and reliable power supply in the process of achieving the goal of carbon peak and carbon neutrality.

According to the white paper, during the "14th five year plan" and "15th five year plan", China Southern Power Grid will put into operation 5 million kilowatts and 15 million kilowatts of pumped storage respectively, and put into operation 20 million kilowatts of new energy storage respectively. It will vigorously promote the flexible transformation of thermal power, promote the expansion of hydropower stations with regulating capacity, reasonably arrange peak gas power, and improve the system regulating capacity.

In the future, more and more frequency regulation, peak shaving and emergency power supply will become products and enter the trading market. China Southern Power Grid is developing a trading mechanism to adapt to the participation of emerging market entities such as pumped storage, new energy storage and virtual power plants, designing flexible and diversified market demand response trading modes, and promoting the market construction of demand response in five southern provinces. Not only industrial users. China Southern Power Grid encourages all kinds of power market entities to tap peak shifting resources, and guides non-productive air conditioning loads, industrial loads, charging facilities, user side energy storage and other flexible loads to actively participate in demand response. By 2030, China Southern Power Grid will reduce its peak load by more than 5%.

Source: https://chuneng.bjx.com.cn/news/20210517/1152719.shtml

The Thermal Energy Storage Subsystem of The World's First 100MW Compressed Air Energy Storage Demonstration Project Began to Install

Recently, the thermal energy storage subsystem of the world’s first 100MW advanced compressed air energy storage demonstration project has begun to install, and all the work is progressing smoothly.

Zhangjiakou 100MW Advanced Compressed Air Energy Storage Demonstration Project is the first one in the world, with a construction scale of 100MW/400MWh and a system design efficiency of 70.4%. The project is located in Miaotan Cloud Computing Industrial Park, Zhangbei County, Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province, covering an area of 85 mu. The project is invested by Zhangbei Giant Energy Co., Ltd. (Giant Group), and the full set of equipment is provided by China Energy Storage (Beijing) Technology Co., Ltd. The technology is supported by Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The construction contents of the project include one set of 100MW advanced compressed air energy storage demonstration system, one 220kV substation, and other supporting facilities such as comprehensive buildings, heating stations, roads, pipelines, etc. All the work is progressing smoothly.

Source: https://esresearch.com.cn

National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and National Energy Administration (NEA) Jointly Issue Statement on Widening the Peak and Off-peak Electricity Price Gap

On December 2, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration issued "Notice on Completing the Signing of Medium- and Long-term Electric Power Contracts in 2021”, which calls for widening of the electricity peak and off-peak price gap. The notice states that when two parties sign a time of use (TOU) contract, a peak and off-peak transaction price may be agreed upon, or a flat price can be determined by referring to the previous year’s average trading price, after which the peak and valley price will fluctuate based on the flat price.

The peak and off-peak price difference is an agreed clause of the electricity transaction contract between the purchaser and seller of electricity, implemented at both the power generation and consumption side to increase the peak and off-peak price difference. The notice also encourages power users to provide their own load curves and to sign medium and long-term power contracts, and encourages power selling companies and comprehensive energy service agencies to provide shorter period and more accurate load curves to help market players better participate in market transactions.

In addition to the announcement from the NEA and NDRC, on November 3, the Jiangsu Development and Reform Commission also released “Notice on Matters Concerning the T&D Electricity Prices and Electricity Sale Prices in the Jiangsu Power Grid from 2020 to 2022”. The notice proposes the further reduction of the off-peak price, widening of the price gap between peak and off-peak, making greater use of peak shifting, and encouraging the development of the energy storage industry.

National Energy Administration (NEA) Announces Approval of Seven Energy Storage Standards

On November 27, the National Energy Administration released its No. 5 announcement for 2020, approving 502 energy industry standards. Seven of the announced standards relate to energy storage, covering areas including supercapacitors for electric energy storage, code specifications for traceability of electrochemical energy storage systems, design specification for electrochemical energy storage stations accessing the grid, and design specification for distributed electrochemical energy storage systems accessing the distribution network. The new standards will take effect on February 1st, 2021.

Six Provinces and Municipalities Issue Documents Encouraging Development of Unified Solar, Storage, and Charging Facilities

On November 19, the Anhui Hefei Municipal People's Government issued “Opinions on Accelerating the Development of the Electric Vehicles Industry,” which encourages development of demonstration projects exploring electric vehicles, battery charging and swapping stations, energy storage stations, and efficient grid interaction demonstration applications. The announcement also encourages the construction of multifunctional integrated "solar-storage-charging-and-discharging" stations (systems which include distributed solar, an energy storage system, and charging and discharging infrastructure). Hefei is the sixth province and/or city to have issued documents encouraging the development of integrated solar-storage-charging facilities.

In November 2018, the Guangzhou Industry and Information Technology Commission issued a three-year action plan (2018-2020) for accelerating the construction of electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The plan promotes the construction of a batch of charging infrastructure "demonstration units" and "demonstration areas" to carry out microgrid demonstration projects, integrated with solar, energy storage, and charging functions.

In November 2018, the Shenyang People's Government Office issued a notice announcing plans to promote the growth of the electric vehicle industry. The plans include the development of an EV demonstration project at the China-Germany Equipment Park which will feature a "roof plan" for the park’s bus depot. The roof plan will consist of a unified solar-storage-charging station, strengthening energy production and increasing the use of clean, renewable energy.

In January 2019, the Jiangsu Department of Industry and Information Technology, the Jiangsu Development and Reform Commission and three additional departments jointly issued "Measures for the Construction, Operation, and Management of Electric Vehicle Charging Facilities in Jiangsu." Qualified constructors and operators of charging facilities can register and obtain a license for selling electricity, allowing them to participate in electricity market transactions. The local government is also encouraged to support the development of unified solar storage and charging facilities.

On April 13, 2020, the Jinan Development and Reform Commission issued “Opinions on Accelerating the Construction of Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure in Jinan (Draft for Comments)”, which encourages the development of unified "solar-storage-charging" facilities.

In July 2020, the Fujian Department of Industry and Information Technology issued “Three-year (2020-2022) Action Plan for the Construction of ‘Electric Fujian’”, which states that wind plants and solar stations should be encouraged to bundle with energy storage systems to improve power quality. The plan also promotes the commercial application of energy storage through the construction of several projects including wind and solar integrated with storage, solar-storage-charging stations, and energy storage stations.

First Batch of National Energy Administration (NEA) Energy Storage Demonstration Projects are Publicized

On November 10, 2020, the National Energy Administration published a list of its first batch of science and technology innovation (energy storage) pilot demonstration projects. The list of projects includes generation-side, behind-the-meter, and grid-side applications, as well as thermal-generation-bundled energy storage for frequency regulation. Two projects have been announced in each application, totaling eight selected projects. Since the 2017 release of the “Guiding Opinions on Promoting Energy Storage Technology and Industry Development”, promotion of energy storage demonstration projects has been a dominant focus of the NEA. Following two years of solicitation of opinions from industry experts and several rounds of discussions, screening of the first batch of demonstration projects began in July 2020. Projects were selected from among nationwide operational energy storage projects (excluding pumped-hydro storage project). The first batch of announced demonstration projects are located primarily in Qinghai, Hebei, Fujian, Jiangsu, and Guangdong provinces, and more than 17 companies have participated in project investment and construction.

According to statistics from the China Energy Storage Alliance (CNESA), by the first half of 2020, the accumulative installed capacity of energy storage put into operation in China had reached 32.7GW, accounting for 17.6% of the worldwide market. Among this total, electrochemical energy storage reached 1,831MW. The rapid development of energy storage has not only led to an accumulation of practical experience, but has also exposed various problems in the development process which require in-depth analysis. The solicitation and screening of demonstration projects has set new benchmarks and models for the industry. Through investigation and communication with relevant stakeholders and industry experts involved in project implementation, China Energy Storage Alliance has summarized the following characteristics of the demonstration projects:

• The demonstration projects reflect the comprehensive value and benefits of energy storage. Indicators for selection include technological advancement, usage scenario, level of innovation, safety measures, comprehensive benefits, economic efficiency, and regional government support.

• The demonstration projects are of a comprehensive and representative type. Projects cover generation-side (both renewable energy generation and conventional thermal generation), grid-side, and behind-the-meter applications, while technologies include electrochemical, physical, and thermal storage.

• The demonstration project evaluation index is reasonable, reflecting advancement and creativity. The majority of electrochemical projects have a roundtrip efficiency of 85%, while the thermal energy storage projects demonstrate an efficiency of up to 75%. The projects display the comprehensive benefits of energy storage in a variety of application fields, and have significant value for the safe and stable operation of the power system and the large-scale development and utilization of renewable energy.

China’s First Independent Commercial Energy Storage Station Launches in Golmud, Qinghai Province

On November 5, the Shanghai Electric Golmud Meiman Minhang 32MW/64MWh energy storage station in Golmud, Qinghai province officially went into operation. The project features battery systems installed in two cargo sheds in a warehouse style. The system stores renewable energy during periods of high wind or solar curtailment and transfers the stored electricity to the grid when needed. It can provide effective power smoothing and enhance the quality of renewable power generation.

The first phase of the project consists of a 32MW/64MWh energy storage system. Shanghai Electric Gotion New Energy Technology Co. has provided the lithium-ion battery system, while EPC has been provided by Shanghai Electric New Energy Co. The energy storage station is connected to the local Qinghai grid, reducing solar and wind curtailment for nearby renewable power plants. The project is part of the new “shared energy storage” model which allows it to be shared among multiple renewable energy station owners, thereby increasing investment returns, and serving as an innovative pilot for the promotion of greater renewable energy penetration.

Four Renewable Energy + Energy Storage Projects in Hunan Begin EPC Bidding

On October 30, State Grid Hunan Comprehensive Energy Service Co., Ltd. issued a bidding announcement for four renewable energy bundled energy storage projects in the cities of Chenzhou, Yongzhou, Loudi, and Shaoyang. Bidding has been divided into four contracts, which include 22.5MW/45MWh of capacity in Chenzhou, 7.5MW/15MWh in Loudi, 20MW/40MWh in Yongzhou, and 10MW/20MWh in Shaoyang. The projects have a combined total capacity of 60MW/120MWh. Grid connection testing is expected to take place in February 2021.

The maximum total price for the projects has been limited to 6.79 million RMB, and the maximum unit price has been limited to approximately 0.566 RMB per Wh. Among the four projects, the highest unit price is 0.698 RMB per Wh, while the lowest unit price is approximately 0.523 RMB per Wh. EPC development of the project will include project survey, design, construction, and equipment commissioning, but excludes the energy storage station (including batteries, battery management system, containers, and in-box smart auxiliary system), PCS equipment, and other materials procurement.

Project investment and construction is led by State Grid Hunan Comprehensive Energy Service Co., LTD., a joint venture between State Grid Hunan Electric Power Company and State Grid Comprehensive Energy Group, at 60% and 40% ownership, respectively. The project will utilize the State Grid Hunan Comprehensive Energy Service Co. leasing model, which leases energy storage equipment for the construction of energy storage stations, which are in turn leased to wind power companies.

Bidding Begins on Three of 28 Wind Storage Projects in Hunan

Recently, the State Power Investment Corporation and the China Three Gorges Renewables Corporation have launched bidding on three wind power energy storage projects in Hunan province, marking the official launch of the first batch of renewables energy + energy storage projects in Hunan Province.

In March 2020, the development department of the State Grid Hunan Electric Power Co., Ltd. issued a “Notice on the Primary Selection of Energy Storage Project Sites,” which showed that 28 companies in Hunan had committed to developing renewable projects with a total 388.6MW/777.2MWh of energy storage installation capacity. Three of these 28 projects have now begun the bidding process, they include: the Hongtangying wind power plant 10MW/20MWh energy storage demonstration project in Dao County, the State Power Investment Hunan Longshan Dalingshan wind power project paired with 10MW/20MWh energy storage capacity, and the Hunan Channel Phase II 10MW/20MWh capacity energy storage project.

Clean Heating and Solar+Storage+Charging—First Integrated Energy Demonstration Project Constructed in Xinjiang

Xinjiang Comprehensive Energy Service Co., Ltd. and Hami Power Supply Co., Ltd. signed an agreement for investment and construction of an "integrated clean heating and solar+storage+charging" energy demonstration project. Xinjiang Comprehensive Energy Service Co. is responsible for investment, operation, and maintenance of the demonstration project which will be constructed at the Hami Taojiagong Power Supply. As of September 8, the construction of the project’s rooftop distributed solar station, energy storage station, regenerative electric boiler, and electric power supporting facilities has been completed. The construction of two DC charging stations and two AC charging stations has begun, and is planned to be completed by the end of September.

The project primarily consists of a rooftop solar station, EV charging station, regenerative electric boiler, energy storage station, and 5G base station, as well as other components. The distributed solar station is constructed as part of the roof and parking canopy, which are used for daily electricity consumption and providing charging services for local EVs. In summer, the surplus of solar energy can be sold to the grid through the energy storage station. In winter, the advantage of Xinjiang's off-peak electricity price can be used to store energy at night and supply energy for heating during daytime, so as to provide clean heating that is energy saving, environmentally friendly, and low carbon.