By making better use of virtual power plant platforms, State Grid Zhejiang Electric Power is realizing a flexible adjustment in accordance with different electricity consumption scenarios, which is of significance to balancing the grid load.

On Aug 30, the power company issued a message to the Houchen Village Electric Vehicle Charging Station located in Jinhua city through the virtual power plant platform, telling the station to adjust its charging power.

The so-called virtual power plant is a system that combines distributed power sources, electricity users, energy storage, electric vehicles and other resources. It uses a coordinated optimization control system to meet the energy needs of users and participates in the operation of the power system and electricity market transactions.

In Zhejiang province, the local government is introducing measures to support the construction of such virtual power plants. Also, State Grid Zhejiang Electric Power is carrying out practices in Jinhua to assist air-conditioning loads, new energy vehicles and energy storage to enhance the flexibility of the power system and ensure the security of the power supply.

Various regions in Zhejiang have issued policies to support these actions. On June 25, Wuyi county in Jinhua issued the first local subsidy policy for virtual power plants in Zhejiang. It stipulates additional subsidies of 0.42 yuan (about 5 US cents) per kilowatt-hour for energy storage users and 2 yuan per kWh for ordinary users.

In mid-July, 12 companies in Wuyi participated in the electricity adjustment action during the peak period. It was organized by the Zhejiang Power Exchange Center through the Jinhua virtual power plant platform. On Aug 7, Wuyi Jinman Tools received a subsidy of 1,215 yuan — the first company to obtain such a subsidy.

Currently, State Grid Zhejiang Electric Power has activated various types of adjustable resources, linking 4,599 households of various resource users to the Jinhua virtual power plant platform with a maximum load of 361,000 kW. Such actions are playing a significant role in balancing the grid load.