Since the new round of power system reform, various regions have achieved certain achievements in power market trading, transmission and distribution price mechanisms, and incremental distribution network through two years of reforms, but they have been aiming at trans-regional trade in electricity, consumption of renewable energy, The reform of government functions, the establishment of market supervision mechanisms, and other difficult issues still need to be strengthened. With the further deepening of the power system reform, the power market will be more efficient, more fair, and more dynamic, ultimately realizing the efficient allocation of resources and realizing the safe, clean and reliable supply of electricity in China.

I. Status Quo of Power System Reform and Development in 2017

In 2017, China's power system reform pilot has basically achieved full coverage, and an electric reform structure based on integrated pilots and multiple modes of exploration has been initially formed. The proportion of market-oriented transaction power has gradually increased, and the power system reform dividend has been further released.

(I) The increasing scope of price calculation for regional grid transmission

Since the country launched the pilot project of power transmission and distribution reform in 2014, after the expansion of the scope of the pilot, by the end of 2016, full coverage of all pilot power grids outside Tibet has been achieved. In August 2017, the National Development and Reform Commission issued the “Circular on Promoting the Transfer Pricing of Trans-provincial Inter-regional and Regional Power Grids in an All-round Way” to organize the development of the eastern, central, northeastern, and northwestern regions on the basis of trials of transmission and distribution price reforms in the North China Regional Power Grid. The power grid transmission price reform, in December 2017 has completed the above-mentioned regional grid power transmission price verification work.

(B) The cost of electricity for enterprises has dropped significantly

In the second half of 2017, the average transaction price of marketized transactions was 4.7 points/kWh, reducing the energy cost of enterprises by about 23 billion yuan. After the reform of the transmission and distribution prices, the average transmission and distribution tariff was reduced by 1 point/kWh compared with the current purchase and sale price difference, and the reduction of 32 provincial-level power grids was permitted to earn about 48 billion yuan. It is estimated that the cost of electricity consumption will be reduced by 100 billion yuan throughout the year, of which the electricity price for market-oriented trading will be reduced to 18 billion yuan, and the price for transmission and distribution will be reduced by 38 billion yuan.

(III) The initial establishment of market competition mechanism in the power sales side

As of November 2017, with the approval of the pilot project for Jiangsu's electricity sales side reform and Ningdong's incremental power distribution business, the number of reforms on the sales side has reached 10 pilots across the country, and the number of pilots for incremental distribution has reached 195. At the same time, the pilot project for reform of the power sales side has greatly stimulated the enthusiasm for social investment. There are more than 2,980 power sales companies registered in power trading institutions across the country, of which Shandong, Guangdong, and Hebei have established the largest number of power sales companies.

(4) The completion of the basic establishment of the provincial power trading centers

Based on the two state-level power trading centers in Beijing and Guangzhou, each province has actively established a provincial-level power trading center. As of November 2017, provincial-level power trading centers have been established in all provinces except Hainan. Among them, Guangzhou, Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangdong, Guangxi, Shanxi, Hubei, Chongqing, and Shanghai have established provincial-level power trading centers in a joint-stock system.

(V) The electricity spot market enters the pilot construction stage

The southern regions (starting in Guangdong), Mengxi, Zhejiang, Shanxi, Shandong, Fujian, Sichuan, Gansu, and other eight regions were selected as the first batch of electricity spot market construction pilots. The pilot area has accelerated the formulation of spot market plans and operating rules, and established a technical support system. At the same time, it has actively built a mid-to-long-term electricity trading mechanism that is compatible with the electricity spot market. It is expected that the electricity spot market will be commissioned before the end of 2018.

(6) Large-user direct purchases of electricity trading power continue to increase

In the first half of 2017, all regions signed direct transaction annual and monthly contracts, and the transaction platform centralized trading volume of power was about 950 billion kwh. The volume of direct electricity purchases within the business areas of the State Grid, China Southern Power Grid and Mengxi Power Grid reached 500 billion kwh, which was an increase of 50% year-on-year, accounting for 22% of the electricity sold by the grid companies. The National Development and Reform Commission predicts that by the end of 2017, the scale of the electricity market, including direct electricity trading, power generation rights trading, and trans-provincial power transmission transactions, will reach 2 trillion kWh, accounting for 35% of the total sales volume of the power grid. Among them, the annual direct electricity trading volume of electricity is about 1.2 trillion kWh, an increase of about 50% year-on-year.

II. Analysis of Development Situation of Power System Reform in 2018

In 2018, China's power system reform will enter a crucial stage. The National Development and Reform Commission will guide local governments to refine the pilot content, improve supporting measures, highlight key tasks, fully mobilize the enthusiasm of all parties involved in the reform of the power system, and ensure that the pilot work is carried out in an orderly and steady manner. Promote the reform of the power system.

(I) Distributed generation will be included in the scope of market-oriented transactions

On October 31, 2017, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration issued the Notice on Launching a Pilot Project for Distributed Power Generation Marketization. It plans to start trading in the first batch of pilot regions in February 2018, and summarize the evaluation and pilot work before mid-January 2018. And timely promotion. The “Notice” limited the scale of the projects that participated in market-oriented transactions, and at the same time systematically constructed a distributed power generation market-based trading mechanism, and elaborated on the terms of transaction duration, transaction power, settlement price, and “over-net fee” standard. Distributed generation projects can be marketized by direct transactions, commissioned by the grid companies to sell electricity, and grid companies adopting the benchmark electricity price acquisition model.

(B) The proportion of large users trading power to maintain rapid growth

According to the “Opinions on Soliciting the Work on Construction of Electricity Markets (Consultation Draft)” issued by the Energy Bureau in March 2016, the 100% marketization of industrial electricity consumption will be realized in 2018, which means that all industrial applications will be cancelled. Electricity plan, industrial electricity all enter the market. In 2020, commercial electricity consumption will be fully market-based.

(III) Value-added services will become the key to the profitability of sales companies

With the increase in the number of transactions, access to adequate user volume and increase user stickiness, binding customers is the key to improving the profitability of power sales companies. When the ratio of industrial and commercial user participation has increased to a certain extent, the use of a large amount of accumulated user and user data to extend the new liquidity model is the key to improving profitability. The main channels include expanding the scope of value-added services, and collecting value-added service fees such as operation and maintenance, energy saving, maintenance, and demand-side response; playing the platform value and providing platform services such as investment and financing, and power sales company consulting.

(IV) The supporting role of new technologies in the process of electric reform is becoming more and more obvious

The promotion and application of new technologies, such as big data and Internet+, will make the power grid appear flat. It is expected to bring revolutionary changes to the power industry and become a catalyst for electric reform. Big data can reflect the characteristics of the power system with full data, providing a panoramic view of the entire process. The application of smart grid big data will transform the fragmented data resources into effective data assets, supporting more comprehensive analysis, more accurate forecasting and more valuable decision support.

(5) Social capital will further flow into the grid investment field

Distribution network is the service platform for the future sales market, with certain market monopoly and exclusiveness. In the country's already announced distribution network upgrade plan, encouraging social capital to invest in distribution network construction has become a clear policy orientation, making the distribution network, especially as an incremental park distribution network, likely to become a social capital into the electricity market. Breakthroughs and footholds.

(6) The advantages and functions of the industrial investment fund are becoming more prominent

Specialized industrial investment funds have many advantages in terms of systems, mechanisms, resources, management, investment, financing, and capital operations. By mobilizing resources and using professional skills, the role of industrial investment funds in cultivating the market is very high. Obviously, it can not only meet and coordinate the interests of all parties, but also help companies improve the energy management system. In the era of reform of electric power, the introduction and management mechanism of sound industrial investment funds will play a crucial role in the process of new electric power reform.

III. Suggestions for Power Generation Enterprises

Under the new situation where the reform of the power system continues to deepen, in order to maximize the interests of enterprises, it is recommended that power generation companies strengthen related work from the aspects of coordinated development of energy supply, cultivation of new types of development, provision of energy management services, and strengthening of capital operation capabilities.

(1) To promote the coordinated development of various forms of power generation with the goal of development quality, and to build a multi-energy supply system

Changing the traditional energy supply method is one of the important tasks of the new round of power system reform. Building a multi-energy supply system is an effective way to promote the energy supply revolution and improve the quality of energy development. Under the development requirements of the new electricity reform, power generation enterprises should promote the clean and efficient use of coal in the traditional thermal power field, and pay attention to the development coordination issues of power generation resources, power generation projects and power consumption in the field of clean energy power generation, and generate electricity through traditional power generation and new energy. In combination with centralized power generation and distributed power generation, a multi-complementary energy supply system is formed to promote the development and utilization efficiency of energy within the power generation enterprises; meanwhile, in the construction of energy transmission and distribution networks and energy storage facilities, etc. Strengthen the business layout, support the development of the multi-energy supply system, and then enhance the flexible supply of multi-form and multi-type energy of power generation enterprises, and promote the formation of their own energy supply and service advantages through a new round of reform.