Jointly promote the construction of a global energy internet

China Energy Storage Network News: On September 26, 2015, President Xi Jinping announced at the United Nations Development Summit that "China proposed to explore the construction of a global energy internet and promote the use of clean and green methods to meet global electricity demand", which has drawn a new blueprint for the green and low-carbon development of world energy, opened up a new path for addressing climate change, and demonstrated China's wisdom and responsibility to the world. Deeply implementing President Xi Jinping's important initiative and building a global energy internet is a concrete practice of implementing the five development concepts of innovation, coordination, greenness, openness, and sharing, a strategic measure to promote the construction of the "Belt and Road", and the only way to promote the comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable development of the economy, society, and ecological environment.

1. Building a global energy internet is of great significance

Resource shortage, environmental pollution and climate change are the three major challenges facing countries around the world, and the root cause lies in the long-term large-scale development and use of fossil energy. The fundamental way out of the challenge is to accelerate clean development and implement "two substitutions": that is, to implement clean substitution in energy development, replacing fossil energy generation with clean energy such as solar energy, wind energy and hydropower; and to implement electric energy substitution in energy consumption, replacing coal and oil with electricity, and the electricity comes from afar and is clean power generation.

Since all primary energy can be converted into electrical energy, all terminal energy can be replaced by electrical energy. In the future, the global energy supply will mainly be clean power generation, and the terminal energy will mainly be electrical energy consumption. The power grid will inevitably become the basic platform for the development, configuration, and use of various energy sources. The energy grid of the future will inevitably be the power grid. The energy grid, transportation grid, and information grid are the three most important basic networks in the world. The global transportation grid and information grid have been generally built and interconnected, and the energy grid will inevitably develop in the direction of interconnection.

The Global Energy Internet is a strong smart grid that is globally interconnected and has UHV power grid as its backbone. Its essence is "UHV power grid + smart grid + clean energy". UHV power grid is the key, smart grid is the foundation, and clean energy is the basis.

my country is the world's largest energy consumer and carbon emitter, accounting for 23% and 28% of the world's energy consumption and carbon emissions respectively, and its energy consumption per unit of GDP is about 70% higher than the world average. Promoting the construction of a global energy internet has huge economic, social and environmental benefits. First, it can achieve clean development. From now on, the global and Chinese clean energy only need to maintain an average annual growth rate of 12.4% and 13% respectively, and the proportion of clean energy can be increased to more than 80%, achieving sustainable and clean energy supply and completely getting rid of the fossil energy dilemma. Second, it can respond to climate change. my country can control the peak of carbon emissions to about 10.1 billion tons, reducing the peak by 2.4 billion tons, and the peak time can be advanced from 2030 to before 2025. By 2050, global carbon dioxide emissions can be controlled at about 11.5 billion tons, only half of that in 1990, and the goal of controlling global temperature rise within 2°C can be achieved; third, it can drive economic growth. The investment scale of building a global energy internet exceeds 50 trillion US dollars. Accelerate the construction of China's energy internet. my country will invest 10 trillion yuan in power grids from 2016 to 2025, driving 10 trillion yuan in clean energy investment, totaling 20 trillion yuan, which can continuously drive economic growth, drive the development of strategic emerging industries, promote supply-side structural adjustment and economic transformation and upgrading, and effectively solve the prominent contradiction of "economic downturn and haze upturn". Fourth, promote peaceful development. It is conducive to promoting international electricity trade, giving play to the resource advantages of poor areas, narrowing regional differences, reducing international disputes, promoting the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind, and making the world a "global village" with blue skies, green land, bright and peaceful harmony.

2. Jointly promote the accelerated development of the global energy internet

President Xi Jinping's proposal has been highly praised at home and abroad, forming a broad consensus and becoming a resounding "Chinese voice". my country's UHV technology is advanced and mature, achieving "Created in China" and "Leading by China". The construction of smart grids is at the forefront of the world. The installed capacity and production capacity of wind power and photovoltaic power generation are ranked first in the world. China has favorable conditions to lead the development of the global energy Internet.

Energy enterprises should play an important role in the construction of the global energy internet. State Grid Corporation of China has conscientiously implemented the initiative of President Xi Jinping and has done a lot of pioneering work in resource assessment, scientific and technological research, equipment development, investment and financing innovation, organizational construction, planning research, and demonstration projects, promoting the global energy internet from concept to practice, and has made important progress and achievements. For example, it has systematically evaluated the renewable energy resources of all continents in the world, including Arctic wind energy and equatorial solar energy; held high-level Sino-US and Sino-European global energy internet technology and equipment seminars, clarified the breakthrough direction of key technologies and equipment; held a high-level seminar on global energy internet investment and financing, studied investment and financing policies and financial solutions; promoted the interconnection and intercommunication of power grids with neighboring countries, and carried out in-depth research on Asian power grid interconnection and Asia-Europe inter-continental transmission.

In the next step, it is recommended that we focus on the construction of the "Belt and Road" and the goals of the "13th Five-Year Plan", take the establishment of the Global Energy Internet Development Cooperation Organization as an opportunity, adhere to mutual benefit and common development, and work together and make joint efforts for domestic and foreign energy companies, equipment manufacturers, scientific research institutions, universities, financial institutions, etc. to promote the development of the global energy Internet and make new breakthroughs, and make positive contributions to the realization of the "two centenary" goals and the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

(The author is a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Chairman and Party Secretary of State Grid Corporation of China)