Jiangsu's power grid drew a record 41.64 GW of external electricity this summer, with clean energy accounting for more than 60% of cross-regional transmission in July-August.

The peak external power intake rose 2.7% from a year earlier, according to State Grid Jiangsu Electric Power Co., Ltd. on September 18.

The province's grid set records in four categories during the summer peak period: maximum grid load, maximum evening peak load, single-day electricity consumption and maximum external power intake.

The maximum grid load reached 160.9 GW, breaking the record four times this summer and becoming the first in State Grid's system to exceed 160 GW.

Jiangsu has built six cross-regional ultra-high voltage transmission corridors, forming a multi-source supply pattern from north China, northeast China, southwest China and Anhui province.

Two direct-current lines — Yanhuai and Xitai — transmit power from Shanxi and Inner Mongolia to Jiangsu. Three other DC lines — Longzheng, Jinsu and Jiansu — deliver clean hydropower from the Three Gorges and Sichuan province. The Huaishang ultra-high voltage AC line transmits power from Anhui.

This summer, the Yanhuai, Xitai and Longzheng corridors all reached maximum transmission capacity. The Xitai DC line's maximum transmission power reached 8.3 GW, up 3.7% from last year's peak.

Yang Wenming, deputy director of the equipment department at State Grid Jiangsu Ultra-High Voltage Company, said the Yanhuai and other cross-regional ultra-high voltage corridors transmitted more than 33 TWh of electricity in July-August, accounting for about 18% of the province's total social electricity consumption during the same period.

Since the 14th "Five-Year Plan" period, Jiangsu's external power intake has hit record highs year after year, growing from 30.13 GW in 2021 to 41.64 GW this year, an increase of 38%. External power has gradually shifted from seasonal "emergency supplementation" to year-round "regular support".

External power has injected strong momentum into industrial development across the province. "At peak output this summer, external power accounted for 93.16% of Changzhou's grid load, effectively ensuring stable residential electricity use and orderly enterprise production," said Zhou Yuze, a dispatch specialist at State Grid Changzhou Power Supply Company's power dispatch control center.

Changzhou's maximum grid load reached 13.18 GW this summer, up 5.5% from a year earlier. In Suzhou, external power peaked at 15.8 GW, supporting the city — which has the highest electricity load among prefecture-level cities nationwide — through a peak of 36.15 GW.

Next, State Grid Jiangsu Electric Power will accelerate construction of embedded DC transmission projects including the Sutong GIL tunnel, raising the province's north-to-south power transmission capacity to above 32 GW. It will also push for the ultra-high voltage Mengsu DC transmission project to be commissioned in the mid-to-late 15th "Five-Year Plan" period, continuously optimizing the external power mix and keeping the clean energy share of external power above 60%.