On February 26, 2023, the 2022 (the 16th) China Solar Thermal Electricity Conference, co-sponsored by the China Solar Thermal Alliance, the Chinese Society of Engineering Thermophysics, the Chinese Renewable Energy Society, the Chinese Society of Electrical Engineering, and Shouhang Hi-Tech Energy Technology Co., Ltd., was successfully held in Dunhuang, Gansu Province. More than 240 organizations, about 680 participants from Dunhuang Municipal Government, Gansu, Qinghai and other provinces and municipal (prefectural) energy authorities, Huaneng, Huadian, Three Gorges Energy, National Energy Group, State Power Investment, State Grid, PetroChina, Datang, China Power Construction, China Energy Construction, CGN, China Resources, Xinhua Power Generation, fund companies, design institutes, equipment service providers, project builders, and universities and scientific research institutes attended the meeting. The opening ceremony of the conference was presided over by Kou Jianyu, General Manager of Inner Mongolia Electric Power Survey and Design Institute Co., Ltd., Vice Chairman of China Solar Thermal Allliance and Vice Chairman of Solar Thermal Power Committee of China Renewable Energy Society.
Engineering thermophysicist, permanent honorary chairman of the conference, and academician Xu Jianzhong of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wu Yin, former deputy director of the National Energy Administration, Zhu Jianjun, deputy secretary of the Party Committee and mayor of Dunhuang City, Gansu Province, Chen Haisheng, deputy director and secretary-general of the Chinese Society of Engineering Thermophysics, deputy director of the Bureau of Major R&D Programs of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chen Zhimin, deputy director of the Chinese Renewable Energy Society, and former party secretary of the China Science and Technology Exchange Center, Huang Wenbo, chairman of Shouhang High tech Energy Technology Co., Ltd., executive vice chairman of the China National Solar Thermal Alliance, Wang Zhifeng, chairman of the conference, chairman of the China Solar Thermal Alliance, researcher of the Institute of Electrical Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and other leaders, experts and scholars at the meeting made speeches at the opening ceremony.
Academician Xu Jianzhong said in a written speech that solar thermal power, with long-term safe thermal storage technology, is a flexible and clean power source that can play the role of anchor in the new power system. With the joint efforts of all colleagues in the industry, after more than ten years of development, China has made remarkable achievements in the innovation, application and promotion of solar thermal power generation (as concentrating solar power, CSP) technology, and the level of technical capability has been greatly improved. According to the statistics of the China Solar Thermal Alliance, the number of enterprises related to the solar thermal power industry chain has reached about 600, with nearly 60000 employees. The solar thermal power generation technology using conduction oil (biphenyl diphenyl ether) and molten salt as heat transfer fluid has obtained commercial demonstration application, and the plant performance ranks among the top in the world. The relevant achievements of supercritical carbon dioxide solar thermal power generation technology with particles as heat transfer fluid are in the leading position in the world. China has independently mastered the key core technologies of the solar thermal power industry chain, laying a solid foundation for the subsequent large-scale development. The further development of solar power generation in the future still needs to be innovation-driven, and research and explore new technologies to improve power generation efficiency and reduce costs. Solar thermal power generation system involves multi-disciplinary intersection. We need to use new ideas and new technologies to continuously invest in scientific research and development and advanced technology demonstration, so as to improve the international competitiveness of China's solar thermal power generation technology and industry.
As the most authoritative and influential solar energy science and technology event in China, this conference brought together many experts and industry leaders. We hope that you can focus on the difficult issues in the field of solar thermal power generation, speak freely and brainstorm, and jointly explore the way to promote the innovative development of solar thermal power generation technology.
Figure: Academician Xu Jianzhong communicated with Dr. Christoph Richter, Secretary-General of the SolarPACES Executive Committee of the International Energy Agency during the 7th Conference (2013)
Figure:Wu Yin, former deputy director of the National Energy Administration made an invited speech
Zhu Jianjun, deputy secretary of the Dunhuang Municipal Party Committee and mayor of Gansu Province said that in recent years, Dunhuang has seized the advantages of resources, pursued the "wind" and "solar", and vigorously promoted the development of new energy industry. New energy projects such as the 100MW molten salt solar tower and Dacheng 50MW molten salt Linear Fresnel CSP plant in Dunhuanghave landed in Dunhuang, helping us make important breakthroughs in the development of new energy industry. The holding of the China Solar Thermal Electricity Conference will certainly become an important platform for cooperation and exchange, mutual learning among industry experts and entrepreneurs, as well as a major opportunity for the development of Dunhuang's new energy industry. I hope that the leaders, experts and entrepreneurs attending the meeting will continue to pay attention to and support the economic and social development of Dunhuang city, put forward more valuable opinions and suggestions on our work, and jointly promote the development of the new energy industry to a new level and create new brilliance.
Picture: Zhu Jianjun, Deputy Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee and Mayor of Dunhuang City, Gansu Province delivered a speech
Chen Haisheng said that the conference has driven the deep integration of scientific research and industrial development, as well as the development of solar thermal power generation technology and industry, with a free and relaxed atmosphere of academic exchange and the ideological collision of innovative ideas. China's renewable energy industry is currently entering a stage of rapid upgrading and large-scale development. Among them, solar thermal power generation, as an indispensable component, its advantages and value have been widely recognized. According to the Blue Book of China's Concentrating Solar Power Industry 2022 publised by China Solar Thermal Alliance, by 2022, China's total installed CSP plants capacityhas reached 588 megawatts, accounting for 8.3% of the global total installed capacity of solar thermal power. Solar thermal utilization, including solar thermal power generation, has become a strategic support force for building a new energy structure system in China, and has broad prospects for development. It can be predicted that with the continuous improvement of scientific and technological development, solar thermal utilization will play an increasingly important role in the energy revolution.
Picture: Chen Haisheng, Vice President and Secretary General of the Chinese Society of Engineering Thermophysics, anddeputy director of the Bureau of Major R&D Programs of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
Chen Zhimin, the vice president of the China Renewable Energy Society and the former secretary of the CPC Committee of the China Science and Technology Exchange Center, believes that solar thermal power generation is a clean energy technology with broad prospects, especially for the absorption of intermittent power sources such as wind and solar, which will play an important role in ensuring the safe and stable operation of the new power system. Solar thermal power generation is entering a new stage of development. This conference brought together experts, scholars and representatives of entrepreneurs from the "top stream" in the industry. They will share the latest technological progress and experience, explore cutting-edge hot spots and difficulties such as solar thermal power generation technology, and discuss the construction of integrated renewable energy power generation base for solar thermal power generation and solar thermal storage. At the same time, relevant enterprises also demonstrated the cutting-edge solar thermal power generation technology and equipment, hoping that everyone can have in-depth exchanges and connectivity, and jointly promote the development and upgrading of the solar thermal power generation technology industry.
Picture: Chen Zhimin, Vice President of the China Renewable Energy Society and former Secretary of the Party Committee of the China Science and Technology Exchange Center
Huang Wenbo said that by the end of 2022, the installed capacity of renewable energy power generation in China has historically exceeded that of coal power generation. The construction of new energy system and new power systems has brought new opportunities for the development of the CSP industry. The State Council's Action Plan for Carbon Peak before 2030 clearly states that: actively develop solar thermal power generation and promote the establishment of a comprehensive renewable energy power generation base with solar thermal power generation, photovoltaic power generation and wind power complementary regulation. We will accelerate the construction of new power system. This points out the direction for the development of solar thermal power generation industry. In the past 2022, with the rapid development of about 30 CSP projects in comprehensive renewable energy power generation bases with a total installed capacity of about 3.3 million kilowatts, the solar thermal power generation industry ushered in a new upsurge of development and also brought new challenges. For example, how to give full play to the comprehensive advantages of the long-cycle, large-capacity, high-security and low-cost heat storage system equipped in the CSP plants to better meet the needs of building a new power system? How to tap the greater potential value of solar thermal power generation technology in the context of electricity market trading? These problems need to be better solved through collective thinking and concerted efforts. As the executive vice-chairman of the China Solar Thermal Alllianceand the co-sponsor of the conference, Shouhang Hi-Tech actively participated in the exchange and cooperation of the industry innovation platform, and also hoped to establish closer contact and more accurate interaction with more industry experts and leaders, wholeheartedly serve the overall situation of CSP industry, and play the responsibility and responsibility of enterprises under the "double carbon" goal.
Picture: Huang Wenbo, Chairman of Shouhang Hi-Tech Energy Technology Co., Ltd. and Executive Vice Chairman of the China Solar Thermal Alliance
Dr. Wang Zhifeng, president of the China Solar Thermal Alliance and researcher of the Institute of Electrical Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said that the Ministry of Science and Technology, the National Energy Administration, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Financeand other relevant ministries and commissions, the State Grid, academicians and scientists all attach great importance to and give strong support to the development of solar thermal power technology. At present, the European Union, the United States, Australia, South Korea, and other countries are competing to spend large amounts of money to tackle key problems in solar thermal power generation technology, especially the fourth generation and more advanced and cutting-edge CSP technology that can significantly reduce costs. The supercritical carbon dioxide solar thermal power generation system supported by the national key research and development plan will be completed in Yanqing, Beijing, in the first half year of 2024. China has taken the lead in the world in the fourth generation of CSP technology.
The development of the solar thermal power industry cannot be separated from the support of science and technology, let alone the joint efforts and active participation of our colleagues. In fact, the number of participants in the industry conference also reflects the development of the industry. In 2007, there were less than 60 participants in the first conference. Today, the conference was full of guests, with more than 750 registered participants, and more than 680 on-site participants. The solar thermal power industry is ushering in a new chapter of large-scale development.
Picture: Dr. Wang Zhifeng, President of the Conference, President of the China Solar Thermal Alliance and Researcher of the Institute of Electrical Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
The conference lasted for 2.5 days, and had nearly 60 technical reports for discussion, 16 exhibitions, plus the visit to the DCTC and Shouhang’s CSP plants in Dnhuang.
As the only high-quality power source capable of generating electricity continuously 24 hours a day and giving full play to the role of coal-fired power generation, the advantages and value of solar thermal power generation have gradually been highly recognized by the national level, investment enterprises and the power industry. This conference not only set a new record in the number of participants, but also expanded the scope of participants from equipment and technology suppliers to state-owned enterprises and central enterprises. The "Fourteenth Five-Year Plan for Renewable Energy" jointly issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, the National Energy Administration, the Ministry of Finance and other nine ministries and commissions proposed that Qinghai, Gansu, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Jilin and other areas of high-quality resources should give full play to the energy storage regulation capacity and system support capacity of solar thermal power generation, build long-term thermal storage solar thermal power generation projects, and promote the integrated construction and operation of solar thermal power generation, wind power and photovoltaic power generation bases, improve the stability and reliability of new energy power generation. While solar thermal power generation ushers in new development opportunities, it also needs the joint efforts of the whole industry to increase scientific and technological innovation, reduce costs, and promote the prosperity and development of solar thermal power generation industry. Du Fengli, Secretary-General of the China Solar Thermal Alliance said.
