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Z. Lu and G. Zhu
environmental constraints, climate change and low-carbon economy, and national
security.
The strategic needs of industries and enterprises are the linchpin of the market
drivers, which can also be broken down into four domains, namely market-oriented
reform, the optimization of the energy system, the outward influence, catalytic effect
and clustering of industries, and development and evolution of the modern enterprise
system.
The technical drivers are primarily derived from the technical challenges and
opportunities facing the development of power systems. The current technological
hotspots include ICT and the Internet of Things, clean energy and energy storage,
non-fossil fuel energy for transportation and new materials (with the focus being on
advanced power electronics, superconducting power transmission and etc.).
The various drivers of electric power system evolution differ in both the amount
of force applied and the way in which change is exacted under different temporal and
environmental contexts. The evolution occurs from the inside out when it is driven
by technical factors. The changing of the guard between old and new technology and
the improvement of key technical indicators result in a gradual and highly predictable
form of evolution. On the contrary, changes prompted by external, communal drivers,
which are forceful and radical in nature, may lead to a complete unpredictable reconstruction of the entire system. Market drivers straddle in between the two in terms
of how they initiate change in the electric power system. On the one hand, marketoriented reforms contribute to restoring the qualities of electricity as a commodity
and the optimal allocation of resources. On the other hand, the grid as a social infrastructure and public service is characterized as a natural monopoly and will not be
entirely profit-driven.
4.1.2.3 Key Technologies for Promoting the Transition
and Development of the Power System
The development of the power system moves in lockstep with technological progress.
The following technologies may have disruptive impacts on the new-generation
power system.
(1) Efficient and low-cost solar and wind power generation and grid-friendly
technologies
The large-scale development and application of such technologies will displace the
traditional methods of power generation, consign fossil energy-based power to the
dungheap of history and revolutionize the production and consumption of energy. In
fact, with the development of related technologies since 2000, the levelized cost of
energy (LCOE) of large-scale terrestrial PV projects has dropped by 85% over the
entire life cycle. In the meantime, according to the US Department of Energy (DOE),
the LCOE of PV will be cut to 3 ¢/kWh by 2030. The planning and construction
time for renewable energy projects is short, relative to other forms of energy such as
Z. Lu and G. Zhu
environmental constraints, climate change and low-carbon economy, and national
security.
The strategic needs of industries and enterprises are the linchpin of the market
drivers, which can also be broken down into four domains, namely market-oriented
reform, the optimization of the energy system, the outward influence, catalytic effect
and clustering of industries, and development and evolution of the modern enterprise
system.
The technical drivers are primarily derived from the technical challenges and
opportunities facing the development of power systems. The current technological
hotspots include ICT and the Internet of Things, clean energy and energy storage,
non-fossil fuel energy for transportation and new materials (with the focus being on
advanced power electronics, superconducting power transmission and etc.).
The various drivers of electric power system evolution differ in both the amount
of force applied and the way in which change is exacted under different temporal and
environmental contexts. The evolution occurs from the inside out when it is driven
by technical factors. The changing of the guard between old and new technology and
the improvement of key technical indicators result in a gradual and highly predictable
form of evolution. On the contrary, changes prompted by external, communal drivers,
which are forceful and radical in nature, may lead to a complete unpredictable reconstruction of the entire system. Market drivers straddle in between the two in terms
of how they initiate change in the electric power system. On the one hand, marketoriented reforms contribute to restoring the qualities of electricity as a commodity
and the optimal allocation of resources. On the other hand, the grid as a social infrastructure and public service is characterized as a natural monopoly and will not be
entirely profit-driven.
4.1.2.3 Key Technologies for Promoting the Transition
and Development of the Power System
The development of the power system moves in lockstep with technological progress.
The following technologies may have disruptive impacts on the new-generation
power system.
(1) Efficient and low-cost solar and wind power generation and grid-friendly
technologies
The large-scale development and application of such technologies will displace the
traditional methods of power generation, consign fossil energy-based power to the
dungheap of history and revolutionize the production and consumption of energy. In
fact, with the development of related technologies since 2000, the levelized cost of
energy (LCOE) of large-scale terrestrial PV projects has dropped by 85% over the
entire life cycle. In the meantime, according to the US Department of Energy (DOE),
the LCOE of PV will be cut to 3 ¢/kWh by 2030. The planning and construction
time for renewable energy projects is short, relative to other forms of energy such as