In recent years, the energy transition in Vietnam has taken place strongly. However, the increase in the share of renewable energy sources (wind power, solar power...) has caused some challenges in the operation of the power system...
At the technical seminar "Energy conversion - The role of the power system" held by Electricity of Vietnam (EVN), Hitachi Energy Group in collaboration with the Swedish Embassy in Hanoi on the afternoon of December 7. By 2022, experts say that one of the challenges is that the existing power grid may not be well prepared to respond to new generation sources located in locations far from load centers. The current capacity of long transmission lines can quickly become saturated leading to grid congestion, forcing cuts to renewable sources, and increasing energy costs.
Source: Internet
The share of renewable energy is increasing
If in 2018 the total renewable energy capacity was only 350 MW, up to now, it has reached 16,500 MW of solar power and 5,000 MW of wind power (accounting for about 27% of the total installed capacity of the whole system). This is an additional source of great significance in meeting the high load demand, with a high growth rate of approximately 10 %/year on average.
In the coming time, according to the draft Power Plan 8 prepared to be promulgated by the Government, renewable energy sources will continue to be developed. In which, it is expected that by 2030, renewable energy will be added 16,000 MW to the national electricity system.
“The increasing proportion of renewable energy will also affect the operating modes of the power system. Therefore, in the coming time, EVN will focus on solutions to ensure the safe and stable operation of the power system", emphasized Mr. Ngo Son Hai - Deputy General Director of EVN.
According to the plan submitted by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, it is expected that by 2030, there will be an additional 16,000 MW of wind power on the ground, and 7,000 MW of wind power offshore; by 2045 this number will increase to 56,000 MW and 64,000 MW respectively. For solar power, there must be up to 87,000 MW by 2045… It is expected that by 2050, renewable energy will be completely used.
Solutions to reduce pressure for electrical systems
Ms. Ann Måwe, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden to Vietnam, commented that Sweden's power system has a similar design to the Vietnamese power system. The country's territory is narrow and long, so hydroelectric power plants are located mainly in the North, while the main load centers are located in the South. Sweden is aiming to become the world's first carbon-neutral country by 2045. Therefore, in the electricity system, there is also a rapid increase in renewable energies with intermittent characteristics.
In addition, digital solutions such as wide-area monitoring systems and troubleshooting programs can effectively detect dangerous disturbances, quickly assess possible security risks to the supply and react immediately according to a programmed scenario, such as a power outage.
Energy storage technologies such as batteries and hydroelectricity are also becoming important supporting technology for renewable power systems. Batteries can effectively balance short-term changing renewable energy sources by providing an instantaneous response to sudden supply-demand imbalances and maintaining frequency stability.
According to experts, increasing the market share of unstable power sources such as renewable energy requires the management agency to carefully plan and operate the system, including maintaining stable reserves, trading electricity with neighboring countries as well as closely monitoring and reacting immediately if there is any important change in the dispatching operation or if there is a problem on the transmission grid.
Source: VnEconomy