An Interview with Liu Zhenya during the Fifth Session of the 12th National Committee of the CPPCC

HIMALAYAL - SHANGHAI - CHINA



China Energy News: What UHV projects will be constructed during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2010)? And what is your opinion about the position of UHV under the current economic situation?  

Liu Zhenya (CPPCC Member & Former Director of SGCC): Through unremitting efforts, the UHV technology has been successfully developed and projects have been set up. To date, more than 30 thousands of miles of UHVDC/AC has been put into operation and the capacity of transmitted power has exceeded 320 million KV·A. China ushered in an era of massive construction based on the current situation.   

No clear description of UHV projects was given in the 13th Five-Year Plan, so I am not sure what UHV projects will be done during that period. But I propose that we should seize this strategic opportunity to accelerate the development of UHV. The UHV power grid is like electric highway or high-speed rail, and goods and passengers are not dispatched quickly without high-speed rails. And the same goes for the power grid.  

Now, China’s economy has been in new normal state and the growth in the power-using speed is not strong. If we slow down the development of UHV because of that reason, it is wrong and will be an error in the future. The reason lies in the shortcomings of strategy and thought, that is, the balance of energy is maintained within small region not the whole nation.

It must be reliant on UHV grid to achieve nationwide energy balance and the more is offset by the less. What should we do in terms of strategy? The power generation units should be less used in the Central and East China, especially thermal power. The thermal power is dominant in the current market, let alone to exploit the western clean energy. The hydropower, wind and solar energy are precious gifts given by the nature and it is a pity that we do not make full use of them. If the clean energy of western regions is fully exploited and then transmitted to the East China, is it necessary to burn coals in the east region? Breakthroughs should be made in the UHV grid.

China Energy News: To construct the global energy internet needs one nationwide network first. And my question is: is there a possibility that SGCC merges with the China Southern Power Grid? If yes, what about the schedule?     

Liu Zhenya: Whether to combine is determined by economic, political and cultural factors and I have not yet been told of the answer. Compared with the information and communication network, the energy network is indeed a weakness. 

In the past, people relied on the fossil energy and felt at ease even with decreasing amount, and the development of electrical technologies badly lagged behind. The UHVDC/AC is a significant breakthrough and can transmit 1500 kilometers and 5 million KW of electrical power. With such technology, we are able to construct the global energy internet and transform all kinds of energy into the electricity.