"Photovoltaic Highway", traffic goes "green"
2024-08-18
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In the view of industry insiders, the popularization of the "photovoltaic + highway" model can effectively reduce carbon emissions from transportation, further promote the development of green transportation, and contribute to achieving the "dual carbon" goals.
▲The picture shows the Shanxi Taixin Expressway Distributed Photovoltaic Power Generation Research and Experimental Section Project (partial), which has been identified as a smart photovoltaic pilot demonstration project by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and other departments. Photo by Liu Yifan
Recently, the Shaanxi Transportation Control Green Development Group's highway distributed photovoltaic power generation project (Phase I) design and construction general contracting (EPC) project officially started. It is reported that the project adopts the "self-generation for self-use, surplus power to the grid" operation mode. After it is put into operation, it is expected to generate 145 million kWh of electricity per year, and photovoltaic power generation will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 119,600 tons per year, saving 43,600 tons of standard coal.
As a major resource consumer and carbon emitter, the transportation industry accounts for about 10% of my country's total carbon emissions. As the world pays more and more attention to environmental sustainability and green transportation, the combination of renewable energy such as photovoltaics and highways has ushered in huge market demand. In the view of industry insiders, the popularization of the "photovoltaic + highway" model can effectively reduce carbon emissions from transportation, further promote the development of green transportation, and contribute to the realization of the "dual carbon" goal.
Project construction presses the "accelerator"
It is understood that distributed photovoltaic power generation along highways is a new photovoltaic application scenario, including road cut slope photovoltaics, ground fixed bracket photovoltaics, roof photovoltaics, carport photovoltaics, etc.
Since the beginning of this year, "photovoltaic + highway" has attracted much attention, and relevant supporting policies have been frequently issued. In February, the Ministry of Transport issued the "Key Points for the Work of National Highway Service Areas in 2024", which clearly stated that around the "dual carbon" goal, the relevant work requirements for green and low-carbon development in the transportation field and the highway industry should be implemented, the construction of near-zero-carbon service areas should be promoted, and the construction of photovoltaic infrastructure in service areas should be promoted; in the same month, the Hunan Provincial Department of Transportation issued the "Guiding Opinions on the Design and Construction of Hunan Provincial Highway Service Areas", which pointed out that it is encouraged to use land resources along the highway, explore the application of green energy such as photovoltaic power generation on highways, promote the complementarity of advantageous resources, and promote the sustainable development of greener, more integrated, smarter, and more high-end comprehensive transportation.
In March, the "Sichuan Province Expressway "Green Electricity Self-sufficiency" Project Construction Plan (2024-2025)" proposed to build 36 photovoltaic expressways in the province and construct a "green electricity self-sufficiency" energy supply system for expressways with Sichuan characteristics. By 2025, Sichuan will initially build a clean energy supply system for expressways, with a distributed photovoltaic installed capacity of 120 megawatts on expressways, an annual power generation of more than 150,000 megawatt-hours, and a reduction of more than 100,000 tons of carbon emissions, basically achieving a balance between the daytime power generation of distributed photovoltaic projects on expressways and the daytime power consumption of tunnels and service areas along the line.
The construction of "photovoltaic + highway" projects in various places has also pressed the "accelerator". In July this year, the Zhuqiao service area, which was participated in by Shanghai Electric Environmental Protection Group, was officially completed and connected to the grid for power generation. This service area is the first highway service area in Shanghai that combines photovoltaic power generation technology. Its construction capacity reaches 243 kWh, and the average daily power generation is expected to be about 500 degrees. According to preliminary estimates, the Zhuqiao service area can save about 73 tons of standard coal and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 100 tons each year.
Explore nearby consumption scenarios
In the view of the interviewees, the application value of "photovoltaic + highway" is significant. Peng Peng, secretary general of the China New Energy Power Investment and Financing Alliance, said in an interview with a reporter from China Energy News that all parties in the industry currently value the promotion of the "photovoltaic + highway" model because the model can effectively utilize idle space along the highway while providing clean electricity supply for the highway. "For example, in the future, gas stations will gradually become charging stations, and solar photovoltaic modules will be arranged on idle land resources along the highway to provide energy guarantee for the operation of the highway and new energy vehicles. In this context, highways are expected to become an important scene for the consumption of photovoltaics."
However, although "photovoltaic + highway" has great potential, there are still certain challenges in its construction, such as complex scenarios, high construction difficulty, high investment costs, low technology maturity, difficulties in land and planning approval, etc. At the same time, the safety requirements are also higher.
"Due to the particularity of the highway environment, the installation of components on the highway is no longer done in a flat manner. Specifically, there are many railings on the highway, which restrict the installation method of the components, and it is necessary to try vertical and vertical installation. At the same time, due to the terrain and structural limitations of the highway, it is impossible to choose the direction like other distributed photovoltaics, and it is necessary to choose the optimal installation mode according to the terrain." Peng Peng pointed out.
In addition, Sun Chuanwang, professor at the China Energy Economics Research Center of Xiamen University, told the China Energy News reporter that photovoltaic power generation is unstable, and most of the highways are located in remote areas with limited space for power consumption. In addition, due to the limitations of grid-connected technology and imperfect policy systems, the efficiency of photovoltaic power transmission and consumption needs to be improved.
In this context, accelerating the exploration of local and nearby consumption scenarios for photovoltaic power generation along highways has become an urgent problem to be solved in the future large-scale development of photovoltaic power generation along highways. It is worth mentioning that at present, "photovoltaic + highway" usually adopts the "self-generation and self-use, surplus power to the grid" operation mode, which can give priority to the use of local loads by the power generated by distributed photovoltaic power generation systems. When the power generation exceeds the local consumption capacity, the excess power is automatically fed into the public power grid. It is generally believed in the industry that this model will become one of the effective ways to improve the consumption of distributed new energy power.
Gradually improve industrial supporting facilities
In general, in addition to the transportation industry, more "photovoltaic +" application scenarios such as "photovoltaic + fishery", "photovoltaic + forestry", "photovoltaic + water conservancy" are also being enriched. Industry experts pointed out that by combining photovoltaics with multiple fields and realizing the comprehensive utilization of land and resources, it is possible to provide clean energy for various fields while reducing costs and improving efficiency.
Peng Peng believes that in the future, when promoting different scenarios of "PV+", the primary focus should be on how to better integrate PV into specific scenarios, rather than pursuing maximum power generation like other distributed PV. In the actual implementation of the "PV+highway" model, there are still problems with imperfect industrial supporting facilities, such as the lack of bracket standards, which brings certain challenges to project planning and construction. In the future, it will take the combined efforts of the industry to gradually improve it.
Sun Chuanwang suggested that on the supply side, it is necessary to strengthen technological innovation, improve photovoltaic application technology and energy storage development technology, and establish a coupling mechanism between transportation facilities and new energy facilities. On the demand side, it is recommended to promote the distributed power market and the market-based trading of green electricity and green certificates, improve the public's awareness of the "photovoltaic +" model, and promote the social acceptance of green transportation construction. At the same time, strengthen cooperation between enterprises and scientific research institutions, promote technological innovation and standard setting, improve supporting infrastructure, and enhance the access and absorption capacity of photovoltaic power; in addition, the government should simplify the approval process, provide financial subsidy support policies, and encourage enterprises to participate in the investment and construction of "photovoltaic +" projects.
It is generally believed in the industry that with the advancement of technology, the "photovoltaic +" comprehensive development model in multiple scenarios will continue to promote the cross-border integration and development of photovoltaics, form an omnipresent "photovoltaic +" power generation application pattern, and further promote my country's energy system to a safe, low-carbon, clean and efficient new energy system.
Text丨Our reporter Yao Meijiao and Yang Zi
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