以新能源为主体的零碳电力系统

Zero carbon power system based primarily on renewable energyWhite PaperWe support the Sustainable Development Goals3Executive summaryThe Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has stated that “it is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land”, and that “the stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations…requires a fundamental transformation of the energy supply system”. Decarbonizing, or reducing the carbon intensity of, the electricity sector is a key component of reducing these greenhouse gas emissions.This white paper considers the challenge of decarbonizing the power system, the resulting required transition ahead, and what this may mean for the IEC, its members and the standards it produces, which guide the world’s electrotechnology sector.Exposure to a variety of pressures means power systems around the world are already changing and have been doing so for some years. Power system operators, users and other stakeholders are facing a once-in-a-lifetime level of profound challenges, ranging from the need to significantly increase capacity to support the global replacement of fossil fuels sources with electricity, to the uptake of new generation devices such as solar, wind and marine energy generation, to dramatically shifting generation and load profiles, and significant changes in the control and communications equipment used in the network itself.Commitments towards net zeroOver 130 countries around the world have committed to a goal of carbon neutrality or net zero carbon emissions, and many more have committed to significant reductions in their energy intensity. These commitments, to be met over the coming decades, will only accelerate the changes already seen in power systems.The challenge of net zeroFundamentally, a commitment to net zero carbon emissions has profound implications for the electrical power system of a nation. The electricity sector is one of the highest sources of emissions in most nations and is also often considered the sector most readily decarbonized. Thus, a national country’s net zero carbon goal can be taken to also mean a goal of net zero carbon for the electricity or power sector. Furthermore, the transition of other economic sectors such as transport, towards lower carbon goals will have a significant flow-on impact on the power sector.Realization of a net zero carbon power system is an incredible challenge. At the time of writing, carbon-emitting generation sources make up over 60% of electricity supply around the world. The removal of these emissions, and the need to add carbon-free capacity to meet new electrical demands, will require an immense amount of work across a very broad range of topics. Effort will be required in policy and law, regulation, standardization, and technology development.The implications of net zeroA net zero power system will look very different to the power system of today. A net zero power system will rely on large amounts of wind and solar generat