The National Development and Reform Commission ("NDRC") and the National Energy Administration ("NEA") have recently issued the Guiding Opinions on Enhancing the Electrical Power System Regulation Ability (the "Opinions").
The Opinions lay out 20 concrete actions in eight respects, including "making progress in boosting the power-side regulation ability faster", "scientifically optimizing the construction of power grids" and "making power grid dispatching more flexible". Additionally, it is made clear in the Opinions to improve the compensation (market) mechanism for ancillary power services, explore ways of forming the sharing mechanism for power-generation enterprises and consumers' participation in ancillary services, advocate determining which power units undertake the ancillary services in competitive ways, endorse offering compensation by effects of automatic generation control and peak-shaving services, encourage the use of energy-storage equipment and demand-side resources for ancillary power services, and allow third-parties to get engaged in offering ancillary power services. Also, the Opinions propose to encourage social investors to participate in the program launched to boost the power system regulation ability, and encourage the construction and running of facilities used to store heat and energy in power plants, under the third-party investment modes, such as the contracted energy management.