Ⅰ. Background: The urgency of global warming and energy transition
Global warming has become one of the major challenges facing human society. Under the Paris Agreement, countries pledged to limit global warming to 2°C and aim to limit warming to 1.5°C. However, since the agreement was reached in 2015, the total global carbon emissions have risen instead of falling, only falling briefly in 2020 due to the impact of the new crown epidemic, and then rebounding rapidly. This trend highlights the reality that policy commitments alone cannot reverse climate change.
Therefore, accelerating the energy transition is a critical path to achieving climate goals. Especially in emerging economies, sustained economic growth has led to a rapid rise in energy demand, but it has also promoted continuous improvement in energy efficiency. With technological advances, the cost of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar continues to fall, and competitiveness has increased significantly. The data shows that the global energy structure is gradually changing to a clean and low-carbon direction. It is expected that by 2050, the proportion of fossil fuels in the primary energy mix will fall to less than 20% under the "net zero emissions" scenario.
Ⅱ. Smart microgrid: an important pillar of the modern power system
In this transformation process, smart microgrids, as a key bridge connecting renewable energy and end users, are gradually becoming an important direction of power system reform. It not only makes the power system more intelligent, but also shows significant advantages in terms of safety, efficiency and sustainability.
1. Improve the reliability of power supply
Smart microgrids have the ability to operate in isolation from one grid, that is, when a large power grid fails or a large area of power outages caused by natural disasters, it can still operate autonomously and provide continuous power supply to key users. This elastic operation feature plays an irreplaceable role in improving the resilience of the power grid and ensuring the stable power supply of important loads.
2. Optimize energy efficiency
Smart microgrids can efficiently integrate distributed energy resources (such as photovoltaic and wind power), energy storage systems and intelligent control platforms, effectively reduce transmission losses, and realize the complementary utilization and dynamic optimal scheduling of multiple energy sources through "source-grid-load-storage" coordination, greatly improving energy efficiency.
3. Promote the consumption of renewable energy
Microgrids can effectively balance the intermittency and instability of wind and solar energy by configuring energy storage devices and load management systems, realizing "on-site power generation and on-site consumption" and alleviating the pressure of grid connection. This is of great significance for promoting large-scale renewable energy grid integration and realizing the localized utilization of clean energy.
Figure: Smart microgrids: a key force leading the power reform (source network)
Ⅲ. Typical case: the practical results of microgrid reform have emerged
The construction practices in the following regions fully confirm the great potential of smart microgrids in promoting the power transition:
(1) Shandong Rushan Xujia Smart Microgrid Project
State Grid Rushan Power Supply Co., Ltd. has built a smart microgrid with photovoltaic power generation, energy storage and energy saving, electric vehicle charging, solar thermal heating and other facilities as a pilot with Xujia five-star power supply station as a pilot. The system realizes the integrated management of "optical storage, charging and use", reduces the overall energy consumption of the power supply station by more than 95%, saves about 50,000 yuan in annual electricity costs, saves 60 tons of coal per year, reduces carbon emissions by 140 tons, and has the energy storage peak regulation capacity of 8,000 kWh, setting a benchmark for building a "zero-carbon" energy consumption scenario.
(2) Jiangsu Changzhou microgrid application cluster
Changzhou City has promoted the construction of microgrids according to local conditions, covering 15 types of application scenarios such as near-zero carbon parks, smart factories, and vehicle-network interaction, and launched the first microgrid integrated service platform in Jiangsu Province, "I want to build a microgrid". At present, 39 microgrid projects have been built in the city, and it is expected to expand to 100 by 2025. Typical cases include the five-star smart charging station in Zhonglou District, the three energy storage collaborative systems in Wujin High-tech Zone, and the "optical storage and heating" management platform in Jintan Sino-German Industrial Park.
(3) Jiangsu Nantong Smart Microgrid Demonstration Project
Nantong Power Supply Company promotes the demonstration construction of microgrids from multiple dimensions such as transportation, construction, manufacturing, and parks. For example:
1. Ruixing Road green smart charging station to achieve vehicle-network interaction;
2. The municipal administrative center adopts energy hosting services to build an exclusive microgrid for office buildings;
3. The industrial green microgrid built by Zhongtian Iron and Steel was rated as a typical application scenario by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology;
4. Zhongtian Science and Technology New Energy Park deploys a "source-grid-load-storage" collaborative system;
5. It has also laid out a pilot of energy storage virtual power plants to create a new business format of resource aggregation and collaboration.
(4) Xinyi photovoltaic smart microgrid in Suzhou, Jiangsu
By integrating waste heat utilization, photovoltaic power generation, industrial load and electrochemical energy storage, Xinyi Solar has built a "source-grid-load-storage" system that operates in synergy. The project has 35 MW of grid interactive regulation capacity, supports 7,500 kW of valley filling and 2,500 kW peak shaving regulation on a daily basis, saves more than 90 million yuan of electricity per year, and reduces carbon emissions by nearly 180,000 tons, demonstrating the huge benefits of industrial microgrids in green manufacturing.
(5) Hebei Xinhai "fishery, photovoltaic and storage" smart microgrid
In the modern fishery scene, the power supply company cooperates with Xinhai Seafood Biological Technology Company to build a "fishery, photovoltaic and storage" smart microgrid. Photovoltaic panels are built on top of fish ponds, and with lithium-ion energy storage and digital energy management systems, power switching can be completed within 10 milliseconds in the event of a sudden power grid failure, ensuring stable power supply around the clock. The system also has a flexible interactive function to realize the coordination and optimization of "source-grid-load-storage", which greatly improves the energy security level of fishery aquaculture.
Ⅳ. Conclusion: Promote the green energy system towards the deep-water area
As an important development direction of the future power system, smart microgrid is expanding application scenarios around the world. It is not only a technical carrier to improve the resilience and energy efficiency of the power grid, but also a strategic fulcrum to accelerate the green transformation of energy and achieve the "dual carbon" goal. With the continuous deepening of policy support and technological progress, smart microgrids will play an increasingly critical role in the reshaping of energy structure and power system innovation.
