Notice regarding the Printing and Distribution of Regulations on the Interconnection for Operation Between the Grid And Power Plant and Between Grids (Draft) - 1994

Notice regarding the Printing and Distribution of Regulations on the Interconnection for Operation Between the Grid And Power Plant and Between Grids (Draft)

(Issued by the Ministry of Power Industry by Dian Zheng Fa [1994] No. 315 Decree on May 31, 1994)

To Each Power Administration, Power Bureau of Each Province, Municipality and Autonomous Region:

In accordance with the relevant stipulations under the Administrative Rules for Grid Dispatch of the State Council, and on the basis of the consultations with the relevant departments and entities, the Ministry [of Power Industry] has formulated the Regulations on the Interconnection for Operation Between the Grid and Power Plant and Between Grids (Draft) in order to ensure the operation of the grid in a safe, high-quality and economic way and maintain the legitimate rights and interests of the interconnecting parties. We now print and distribute to you these regulations. Please report to the State Power Dispatch Communication Center in a timely manner if you encounter any questions in practice.


Regulations on the Interconnection for Operation Between the Grid and Power Plant and Between Grids (Draft)

(Issued by the Ministry of Power Industry by Dian Zheng Fa [1994] No. 315 Decree on May 31, 1994)

Table of Contents:

Chapter I   General Provisions

Article 1.  

In accordance with the relevant stipulations under the Administrative Rules, these regulations have been formulated in order to meet the demands of the socialist market economy, ensure the operation of the grid in a safe, high-quality and economic way and maintain the legitimate rights and interests of the interconnecting parties.

Article 2.  

These regulations shall be applied to power grid administration departments and their dispatch agencies, interconnected power plants (stations), substations and grids.

Article 3.  

Newly built power plants which need to be interconnected for operation shall meet the relevant industrial policies of the State and the unified plan and technical requirements for interconnection issued by the grid. Relevant power administration departments shall participate in the examination and review of the designs in connection with the interconnection.

Article 4.  

Any power plant or power grid, which needs to be interconnected for operation, must enter into an interconnection agreement with the relevant grid administration department under the principles of mutual benefit and mutual agreement before it interconnects with the grid.

Article 5.  

The interconnection agreement shall include interconnection economic agreement, interconnection and dispatch agreement and any other agreements the parties deem necessary. The parties to the agreement shall respectively submit it to their competent department at an upper level for filing.

Article 6.  

Any power plant or grid, which is interconnected for operation, shall be subject to the unified dispatch of the grid dispatch agency. The technical requirements on the interconnection by the power plant shall conform to national standards or the standards issued by the power administrative department of the State Council. The requirements for grid interconnection may be formulated as per these regulations.

Chapter II   Procedures and Conditions for Interconnection Application

Article 7.  

Any power plant which wants to get interconnected for operation shall submit its application to the relevant grid administration department three months prior to the examination and review of the project design, which shall examine if the design meets the requirement for interconnection, and shall give a written reply thereto within a month upon the receipt of the application.

Article 8.  

Any power plant which applies for interconnection must have the technical equipment and management facility which is able to accept unified dispatch by the grid.

Article 9.  

The construction of the power plant applying for interconnection must be completed and put into operation simultaneously with the supporting transmission facility and secondary system (including relevant devices for relay protection, automatic safety and measurement, telecommunication, automatic grid dispatch, etc.) in accordance with the approved design, and shall be examined and accepted by relevant grid administration department.

Article 10.  

The following terms and conditions must be met before any power plant enters into an interconnection agreement with the relevant grid administration department:

(1)  providing to the relevant grid administration department with the master electrical wiring diagram, parameters for major equipment, method of interconnection, information regarding the relay protection and automatic safety devices, tele-control and telecommunication equipment; for a hydro-electric plant (including pumped-storage hydro-electric plant), information regarding the hydro construction, hydrography, reservoir dispatch curve (dispatch diagram) shall also be provided; for a nuclear power plant, information and drawings concerning the nuclear island shall also be provided;

(2)  The telecommunications facility with the relevant grid dispatch agency has been completed according to the design, and are ready to go into operation;

(3)  The tele-control facility has been completed according to the design, and the relevant tele-control information is ready to be sent into the grid dispatch automation system of the relevant grid dispatch agency;

(4)  The relay protection and automatic safety devices installed pursuant to the design are ready for operation;

(5)  The technical level of the measuring devices for electricity and energy in connection with the interconnection shall meet the relevant stipulations of the State, and the devices have been installed and initially calibrated and tested;

(6)  any other matters.

Article 11.  

In the event that the relevant grid administration department, because of change of circumstances, requires the power plant to install additional equipment in order to ensure the safe operation of the grid, the power plant shall do so.

Article 12.  

The technical conditions for grid interconnection shall be implemented as per the regulations governing power plant.

Article 13.  

Interconnected power grids shall have the capability to control the safe operation of the interconnection.

Article 14.  

Whether the power plant or grid meets the conditions for interconnection is subject to the acceptance upon completion of the power plant, substation and transmission lines, trial operation after interconnection or other means of testing.

Article 15.  

Relevant grid administration department shall provide necessary technical instruction and assistance to the power plant or grid which need to get interconnection, and creative positive conditions for their interconnection.

Article 16.  

In case of any dispute between the interconnecting parties on the conditions for interconnection, decision shall be made by their competent departments at a higher level (including the Ministry of Power Industry) through coordination.

Chapter III   Interconnection Economic Agreement

Article 17.  

The power plants or the grids shall execute the interconnection economic agreement with the relevant grid management authority.

Article 18.  

With respect to the quantity of on-grid energy, the power plants shall execute a purchase and sales agreement with the relevant grid management authority, and shall have the on-grid power price fixed through consultations in accordance with the relevant State regulations. Such on-grid power price shall be implemented only after they are submitted to the State or provincial authority in charge of power price for approval in accordance with relevant regulations.

Article 19.  

The interconnection economic agreement executed between the grid management authority and the power plants shall include the following contents:

(1)  The power purchase and sales terms;

(2)  The pricing terms;

(3)  Terms on financial settlement;

(4)  Terms regarding the liability for breach of contract;

(5)  Terms on incentives and punishment;

(6)  Terms on the calculation and examination of the on-grid power or power quantity which is more (less) than that set forth in the agreement due to the causes of the other party or itself;

(7)  Terms on the examination of technological index and settlement;

(8)  Terms on the handling of force majeure events;

(9)  Terms on the amendments to the agreement;

(10)  Terms on the settlement of disputes under the agreement and on arbitration; and

(11)  Miscellaneous.

Article 20.  

Measures governing the metering of back-up power or power quantity provided during emergencies between two interconnected parties and the compensation therefor shall be determined through consultations by the parties and shall be clearly set forth in the interconnection economic agreement.

Article 21.  

The parties shall decide the necessity regarding the notarization for the interconnection economic agreement through consultation. The notary organ at the location of either party may notarize the interconnection economic agreement.

Chapter IV   Interconnection and Dispatch Agreement

Article 22.  

Upon receiving the application for interconnection from a power plant, the relevant grid management authority shall, in addition to the examination and verification of its interconnection conditions, seriously organize the calculation of the adjusting value the relay protection and security automation facilities co-ordinating with the grid in order to secure the security of the grid, and then shall give the instruction to carry out the application.

Article 23.  

The interconnection and dispatch agreement executed by and between the grid management authority and the power plant shall include the following:

(1)  Interconnected power plants must be subject to unified dispatch by the grid and comply with the relevant directive rules on grid dispatch. Grid dispatch centers shall, based on the designed capacity of each power generating unit and under the principles of equality, fairness, economy and being reasonable, make unified arrangement of peak adjusting, frequency adjusting, voltage adjusting and back-up capacity for use during emergencies by the interconnected power plants.

(2)  The maximum and minimum designed output of each generating unit as verified by the relevant grid management authority shall form the basis of the relevant dispatch centers in arranging the daily load curve and peak-adjusting capacity of the power plants.

(3)  When the relevant grid management authority prepares the monthly power generation plan, it shall meet the operating conditions necessary for the power plants to fulfil the power generation target set by the State or set forth in the relevant agreement.

(4)  When a power plant prepares its maintenance and repair plan, it shall give overall consideration of the needs of the grid and the capability of the power plant, and shall perform its scheduled maintenance and repair in accordance with the plan approved by the grid management authority. The progress rate of repairs shall be in line with the unified arrangement of the relevant dispatch centers. Any changes to the maintenance and repair arrangements and application for approval regarding any temporary repairs shall be handled in accordance with the relevant directive rules of the power grid.

(5)  Power plants shall be operated in strict compliance with the daily load curve instructed by the relevant dispatch centers, with a maximum variance of ± 3%. When changes are made in accordance with the "Administrative Regulations on Grid Dispatch", settlement shall be made in line with the stipulations of the economic agreement. Principle stipulations shall be provided regarding the availability rate of the power plant generating units.

(6)  The relevant grid management authorities will carry out specialized management of such professional work as power-relay protection of the power plants, safety automation installations, communications, grid dispatch automation and so on, and will conduct supervision of the operating status of these facilities.

(7)  Determination of the points for measuring power (including active power and reactive power), power quantity and voltage. The technical grade of the meters shall be in line with the relevant State regulations and the meters shall be subject to periodic verification. The point for measuring power quantity shall be in principle located on the equipment at the ownership parting.

(8)  The power plants shall, as per the requirements of the relevant grid management authorities, submit the relevant statistical statements, the accident wave-recording chart and other materials in a timely and accurate manner.

(9)  The scope of dispatch.

(10)  Administration of the grid safety measures.

(11)  Training, examination and verification of the on-duty personnel of the dispatch system.

(12)  Measures governing the amendment of agreements.

(13)  Measures governing the settlement of disputes under any agreement as well as arbitration.

(14)  Miscellaneous.

Article 24.  

In accordance with the capacity of the power plant generating units, the voltage level of the interconnection system as well as the specific conditions of the grid, the inter-provincial or the provincial power grid management authority shall determine the grid dispatch center with which a power plant shall execute the interconnection and dispatch agreement.

Article 25.  

The substance of the interconnection and dispatch agreement shall be in accordance with the relevant regulations applicable to the power plants.

Chapter V   Supplementary Provisions

Article 26.  

Power plants or power grid which have already been interconnected but which have not executed the interconnection agreement shall execute a supplementary interconnection agreement with the relevant grid management authority within one (1) year upon the promulgation of these Regulations and if the interconnection conditions do not satisfy the requirements set forth in these Regulations, the deadline for improving such technical conditions of interconnection shall be clearly defined in such agreement.

Article 27.  

The inter-provincial or the provincial grid management authority may formulate its own detailed implementing rules in accordance with these Regulations.

Article 28.  

The Ministry of Power Industry shall be responsible for the interpretation of these Regulations.

Article 29.  

These Regulations shall be performed on a trial basis as of the date of their promulgation.