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Smart Grid

Our first major accomplishment was to accelerate the adoption of Smart Grid in China.  Smart Grid is a game-changer in China’s energy landscape because it upgrades the electrical grid to waste less energy and allows for more innovative energy to be delivered.

How We Catalyzed Systemic Change

China had a legacy electrical grid that has not changed for nearly a century.  Furthermore, the buildup of power generation, which is generally coal-based in China, is extremely expensive.  Smart Grid helps alleviate these issues.  By overlaying Internet-type communication capabilities on top of a legacy electrical grid that hasn't changed for nearly a century, Smart Grid provides old and new types of energy when and where it is needed. It encompasses power generation, transmission, distribution, and end-use. It reaches power utilities, wind and solar farms, industrial factories, apartments, government buildings, municipalities, and electric vehicle charging stations.  

 

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Without Smart Grid, the renewable energy supply industry will not be able to grow at scale.

$7.2B

DEVOTED TO SMART GRID IN CHINA BY 2020

15

SMART GRID CITIES

12000 ha

OF LAND DEVOTED TO SMART GRID DEMO IN YANGZHOU

Our Impact

By convening key players in China along with top international experts, we played a crucial part in China’s State Grid’s decision to deploy Smart Grid widely and aggressively. This cooperative catalyzed the creation of a roadmap announced by the State Grid in May 2009 to deploy Smart Grid by 2020.  US$7.2 billion have been dedicated to this effort. Today, there are 15 Smart Grid city pilots across China.

Media & Press

McKinsey

McKinsey Career

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Acknowledgements

  • ML Chan, Executive Director, JUCCCE China Smart Grid Cooperative

  • Yiwei Chen, Program Manager, JUCCCE China Smart Grid Cooperative

  • David Mohler, CTO, Duke Energy

  • Hilary Davidson, Duke Energy

  • Hu Xuehao, Senior Advisor, CEPRI of State Grid

  • Leonard Liu, CEO, Augmentum

  • Leslie Katz

  • Zhu Qun

  • China State Grid

  • Clinton Global Initiative

  • US Department of Energy

  • Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

  • Silver Spring Network

  • City of Yangzhou

  • McKinsey & Company

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