context: Increasing levels of renewable power penetration, new market players, innovation, electronic power devices and severe weather are changing the power sector landscape. Ensuring energy security while advancing decarbonisation goals is top of mind for planners as Beijing prepares the 15th 5-year plan.
The field of power grid engineering has achieved breakthroughs during the 14th 5-year plan period, laying a solid foundation for the energy transition, according to experts speaking at the 2025 National Power Grid Tech Exchange Conference in Beijing. However, during the 15th 5-year plan, power grid development will face new circumstances and challenges.
Du Zhongming 杜忠明 National Energy Administration Power Department director noted
- the PRC's power system will feature
- high levels of renewable energy penetration, power electronics and supply-demand randomness
- these trends impose new requirements on grid planning, engineering construction and system operation
Li Xinsheng 李新生 China Energy Engineering Group stated
- rapid and high-quality development of renewables is placing unprecedented demands on the grid's resource allocation capability, safety level and overall efficiency
- sustained increases in scitech investment and R&D is required
Zhang Ning 张宁 State Grid deputy chief engineer and Construction Department director
- the energy security strategy of the 'Four Reforms and One Cooperation' is being advanced in depth
- major national missions of building a new energy system and new power system have brought a series of technical challenges to grid construction
- there is an urgent need to strengthen research and application of related equipment and construction tech
- for large-scale renewable energy transmission scenarios, accelerated development of new tech like the dual 800 kV ultra-high voltage flexible DC transmission tech is required
Dong Yanle 董言乐 China Southern Power Grid emphasised
- grid construction is in a critical phase in which high-intensity, large-scale construction is advanced alongside innovation-driven development
- an intelligent construction paradigm suitable for grid development must be established
- extensive adoption of new technologies, processes and equipment requires a precise cost-accounting and control system
- as compliance procedures for infrastructure projects have multiplied and deadlines remain tight, new organisation and management models should be developed
Hu Ming 胡明 China Electric Power Planning and Engineering Institute party secretary, observed that as the share of renewable energy continues to rise, issues such as insufficient system regulation capacity, increasing difficulty in balancing power and energy and tight transmission corridor resources are becoming more prominent. Thus, it is necessary to strengthen whole life-cycle management and promote upgrading toward high-end, smart and green tech.