As a major country of clean energy, China is undergoing a historic transformation of its energy mix, with installed capacity of wind and solar power surpassing thermal power. This shift brings brand-new challenges to power grid development. During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China will invest over 5 trillion yuan in building new-type power grids. What kind of grid will this massive investment deliver? Let’s take a closer look.

In line with the deployment of ten major clean energy bases outlined in the Outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan, multiple ultra-high voltage direct current (UHVDC) transmission corridors are under accelerated construction, with another 15 such corridors scheduled to go into operation within the 15th Five-Year Plan period. Stretching across mountains and seas, these corridors deliver photovoltaic and concentrated solar power from Gobi deserts, wind power from grasslands, and hydropower from river valleys in southwest China to densely populated eastern and central regions with massive electricity demand.

If UHVDC lines function as the “aorta” of the power system, distribution grids are the “capillaries” spreading across urban and rural areas. Over the next five years, investment in distribution grids will account for 60% of total power grid spending. Outdated urban power lines will be upgraded, and weak county-level grid infrastructure will be reinforced. By 2030, the national grid will be capable of accommodating 900 million kilowatts of distributed new energy and supporting more than 40 million charging piles.

At the very end of the power supply chain lie smaller microgrids. In Dongshan Village high up in the mountains of Ningbo, a solar-storage system feeds surplus on-site power back to the main grid and is equipped with fast isolating switches. When the main grid malfunctions, the microgrid can operate independently, drawing power from its own generation and energy storage facilities.

The National Energy Administration revealed that by 2030, China will initially complete a new-type power grid platform anchored on backbone and distribution grids and supplemented by smart microgrids. The scale of West-to-East Power Transmission will exceed 420 million kilowatts, supporting new energy power generation to account for roughly 30% of total electricity output.

The nationwide new-type power grid serves not only as an energy transmission hub but also underpins a hidden industrial network and livelihood service system taking shape in tandem. What new opportunities lie within this grid system?

Calculations show that every kilometer of UHVDC corridor construction requires two large transmission towers, consumes around 50 tons of special steel, and generates over 10 million yuan in equipment output value. The Gansu-Zhejiang Power Transmission Project has driven more than 80 billion yuan of investment across upstream and downstream industrial chains and created 24,000 jobs.

Stable transmission of green power in turn fuels industrial growth. At the Hongshagang Industrial Park in Minqin, Wuwei, production lines roll out giant wind turbine blades, nacelles and supporting UHVDC equipment nonstop, ready for delivery.

He Jianbing, Person-in-Charge of Vestas Wind Systems Wuwei Blade Base:We have secured orders for approximately 300 to 400 sets, with a fully packed order book stretching from the start to the end of the year. The boom in new energy has brought tremendous opportunities to our company. Meanwhile, we have attracted supporting industrial partners to set up operations here in Minqin, forming a complete industrial cluster.

As the power grid becomes increasingly interconnected, new job roles keep emerging. Power Aggregation Operator is a profession barely heard of in the past. Their daily work involves monitoring operational data of charging piles, air conditioning units and energy storage stations on control screens, and precisely dispatching all flexible distributed loads during peak electricity demand periods.

Xue Zhiliang, Person-in-Charge of Virtual Power Plant, Integrated Energy Division, Ningbo Yongyao Group:Power aggregation operations are now primarily market-oriented services. For instance, I am currently studying Practical Handbook for Spot Power Market Operations, which requires practitioners to master knowledge of power finance. This role demands cross-disciplinary expertise spanning multiple traditional fields.

Total investment in new-type power grids will top 5 trillion yuan during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, driving an industrial chain worth over 10 trillion yuan in total. Infrastructure investment linked to new grids will directly create more than one million jobs. The rollout of this nationwide grid system fosters local industrial clusters and injects fresh momentum into economic growth.

What new business models have emerged amid new grid construction? As temperatures climb, the power sector enters a critical phase to secure electricity supply for summer peak loads. In Hefei, a national-level Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) demonstration station is testing innovative summer power guarantee solutions through stress testing. What new tools are available to tackle peak demand this summer?

Correspondent Wu Jun, China Media Group:I am now at the national large-scale V2G application demonstration station on Yanglin Road, Hefei. This newly completed facility integrates operation, technical calibration and industry incubation for V2G technologies. A major stress test is underway here today.

Instead of charging, these vehicles are carrying out a special task: reverse power discharge, feeding electricity stored in on-board batteries back into the grid.

Vehicles can transmit power to the grid thanks to V2G charging piles, which break the one-way energy supply limit of conventional chargers. They can both charge vehicles and receive power discharged from cars. During normal charging, the power reading on the equipment display is positive; a negative reading indicates the vehicle is exporting electricity to the grid.

Rising temperatures push up electricity consumption, placing short-term strain on the grid during peak hours. In Hefei, new energy vehicles function as countless mobile power banks, and this demonstration station operates like a small temporary power plant. Micro-terminals and microgrids built on V2G equipment flexibly participate in peak regulation to deliver effective peak shaving and valley filling, enabling more stable and efficient grid operation.

As one of China’s first pilot cities for large-scale V2G application, Hefei now boasts schedulable mobile micro-terminals and microgrids including electric vehicles and energy storage batteries with a total adjustable capacity of 400,000 kilowatts, equivalent to the output of a medium-sized thermal power generating unit.

Efficient operation of all these assets relies on Hefei’s virtual power plant. Massive distributed energy resources appear fragmented and small-scale individually, yet powerful computing and intelligent dispatching from the virtual power plant aggregate them into a unified schedulable “cloud power station”. It monitors real-time grid load and precisely coordinates every discharging vehicle and energy storage unit to pool scattered resources into coordinated capacity.

In line with the latest national plans, China aims to build a new-type power grid that is safe, reliable, green, low-carbon, robust, resilient, smart and flexible. Intelligent dispatching via virtual power plants is gradually enabling adjustable power supply and demand, full utilization of distributed energy and more agile grid operation.

Smooth grid operation through summer peak demand depends not only on smart dispatching but also on scientific inspection and advanced maintenance. A suite of intelligent new devices is now in full operation at the test site.

Inspection robots conduct 24-hour uninterrupted patrols, with built-in sensors detecting equipment faults at the earliest stage. Laser cannons remotely and accurately clear foreign objects such as cloth strips, balloons and kites tangled on transmission lines. Mounted on drones, another piece of equipment travels autonomously along high-voltage lines to identify hidden hazards promptly. These “tech guardians” reinforce the safety foundation of summer power supply, ensuring reliable electricity for households to stay cool through hot weather.