Promote the green and intelligent integrated development of energy infrastructure.

Traditional energy infrastructure is based on fossil fuels and is characterized by centralized energy production and unidirectional delivery to end-users, encompassing large-scale power plants, transmission and distribution networks, and oil and gas pipelines. With the rapid transformation of energy production and consumption patterns and the swift development of new technologies and business models, energy infrastructure is undergoing significant changes in terms of system architecture and operational approaches. A growing number of energy infrastructure projects featuring new attributes such as greenness, intelligence, and integration are emerging rapidly, collectively forming a new-type energy infrastructure system.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the National Energy Administration has promoted a transformation of energy infrastructure across all stages and links toward greater innovation, greenness, and intelligence, achieving positive results. For example, on the transmission side, technologies such as ultra-high-voltage and flexible DC have significantly enhanced the greenness and flexibility of “power transmission from west to east.” Clean electricity now accounts for about 60% of the total electricity transmitted across provincial boundaries nationwide. Efforts are underway to explore and build new medium-delivery networks for green hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol; the demonstration project for a long-distance, large-scale green hydrogen pipeline from Ulanqab in Inner Mongolia to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region is accelerating. On the storage side, diversified and coordinated development of high-head, large-capacity pumped-storage hydroelectricity as well as small- and medium-sized pumped-storage systems is being pursued. The installed capacity of new energy storage systems has exceeded 100 million kilowatts, accounting for over 40% of the global total. On the user side, the world’s largest charging infrastructure system has been established, and large-scale applications of vehicle-to-grid integration are being deepened. Integrated energy stations that combine electricity, gas, heat, hydrogen, and other energy sources are rapidly developing, and new models such as direct connection of green electricity are emerging at an accelerated pace.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, the National Energy Administration will step up efforts to build new energy infrastructure and optimize the layout of key energy corridors, striving to preliminarily establish a new energy system that is clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient by the end of the 15th Five-Year Plan.

Promote green development, adhere to a diversified energy mix that integrates wind, solar, hydro, and nuclear power, and enhance the capacity to supply non-fossil energy sources. Shift coal-fired power from a basic, guaranteed power source to a supporting and regulating one; scientifically plan pumped-storage hydropower; vigorously develop new types of energy storage; and accelerate the construction of a new power system that is well-suited to high proportions of renewable energy.

Promote smart development, expand and establish a batch of exemplary application scenarios for “artificial intelligence + energy,” accelerate the construction of smart grids, and build intelligent dispatching systems. Speed up the digital and intelligent transformation of traditional energy infrastructure such as coal mines, power plants, and oil and gas fields. Vigorously develop new models and business forms, including distributed energy, virtual power plants, and vehicle-to-grid integration.

Promote integrated development, coordinate the “west-to-west power consumption” approach with the “west-to-east power transmission” strategy, strengthen the integrated development of new energy exploitation and energy-consuming industries, and guide industries to rationally locate themselves in regions rich in clean energy resources. Enhance the integrated development and synergistic utilization of new and conventional energy sources, and promote multi-energy complementarity and flexible mutual support among power, heat, hydrogen energy systems, and other energy sectors. Foster the integrated development of energy with industrial, building, and transportation systems, and build a number of zero-carbon factories and industrial parks.

Source: People's Daily