誰
要是能弄明白中國用了多少電﹐這人就要掙大錢了。中國正在開始採用智能電網﹐包括一種高級電表架構(AMI)﹐此架構包括民用及商用電表這樣的設備。
Associated Press
對外國企業而言﹐中國的電網改造工程機遇與風險併存。
通用電氣曾估計這一市場在今後十年中的規模將達到600億美元。
然而﹐如此多機會的出現卻提出了這樣一個疑問﹐那就是全球科技企業願意作出多少犧牲來攫取這些機會：在其他領域﹐希望進入中國智能電網市場的外國參與者可能需要針對中國對產品作出調整、降低售價以及承擔專利技術被當地競爭對手盜取的風險。
目標是為這個全球頭號能源消耗國設計出方法﹐使它能夠通過技術手段更加智能地用電﹐控制家用電器﹐只在需要的時間和地方供電。試想一下﹐家庭智能電表與電力供應商相連﹐能夠提醒用戶和供電商可能出現的用電量飆升情況﹐不僅可以即時調整定價﹐還能控制洗碗機等設備的啟動﹐以此實現效率的最大化。
但在一位中國知名的行業研究人員看來﹐外國供應商不應花太大成本來進行過於智能的思考。
中國電力科學研究院的主要專家胡學浩說﹐歐美研發的AMI領先技術往往要比中國目前所要求的水平先進得多。他說﹐我們發展AMI要視需求而定。
週二在上海舉行的一個地區智能電網會議上﹐就中國是否將從外國供應商那裡購買電表設備﹐胡學浩興致勃勃地回答說﹐中國的電網技術完善﹐可以運行最先進的產品﹐但中國並不一定需要。
胡學浩舉例說﹐新的無線電表可以實現家庭和電網公司間的交流﹐儘管這是重大進步﹐但在公寓建設中是沒用的﹐中國許多地方將電表系統置於地面以下﹐他說﹐我不會為我不需要的功能花錢。
胡學浩還指出﹐供應中國市場的美國電表通常讓每個住宅單元花費超過100美元﹐這是他個人每月電費的10倍多﹐他說﹐對於中國居民來說太貴了。
胡學浩特別對通用電氣持批評態度。在當天稍早的一次演示中﹐胡學浩批評通用電氣希望“直接”向中國銷售設備﹐這意味著它將向中國提供與美國一樣的設備。胡學浩說﹐如果他們的設備符合中國標準﹐我想我們可以接受他們的電表。
通用電氣一位發言人沒有立即回應置評要求。
週二在另一個場合﹐胡學浩說﹐美國標準不適合中國市場﹐並補充說﹐歐洲標準更接近。中國最大電力輸送企業──國家電網公司今年稍早宣佈了自己的標準。
他講話後很快就出席了電力專家的研討會﹐在這裡標準問題再次被提起。在該研討會中﹐韓國電力交易所（Korea Power Exchange）高管Yeoungjin Chae高興地說﹐他的USB電腦設備是菲律賓生產的﹐可以毫不費力接上中國生產的筆記本電腦﹐但同時他也哀嘆各國電插頭不能兼容。談到應用智能電網技術時﹐他補充說﹐韓國認為國際合作是該業務最重要的部分﹐否則在把原先不相連的東西接在一起的時候﹐你不得不轉接許多設備。
研討會主持人朔姆貝格（Richard Schomberg）響應了這一觀點﹐他還是智能電網戰略集團（Smart Grid Strategic Group）主席。該研討會一位日本成員也表示讚同﹐他說﹐這些小細節確實重要。
胡學浩說﹐中國有自己的標準﹐但可以使之國際化﹐國際化非常重要。
James T. Areddy
（本文版權歸道瓊斯公司所有﹐未經許可不得翻譯或轉載。）
Whoever figures out how much electricity China uses stands to make lots of money.
The country is in the process of adopting a smart electrical grid, including Advanced Metering Infrastructure, or AMI, which includes equipment like meters for residences and companies.
China needs to update aging equipment and better link power producers, who tend to be in the northwest, with users, who tend to be located in the coastal southeast. That need represents major business opportunities for foreign equipment suppliers like General Electric Co., Siemens AG and Alcatel-Lucent, who are lining up to help build out smart grid and AMI.
GE has estimated the market at $60 billion over the next decade.
The presence of so many opportunities, however, raises questions about how much sacrifice global technology companies are willing to make in order to grab them: As in other sectors, foreign participants hoping to gain access to China's smart grid market may need to tailor their products for China, lower prices and risk having proprietary technology stolen by local competitors.
The aim is to design ways for the world's No. 1 energy consumer to more intelligently use electricity by employing technology to control appliances and supply power only when and where it is needed. Think smart electrical meters in homes that are linked to power suppliers and able to alert customers and producers to expected usage surges, adjust pricing on the fly and control the start-up of devices like dishwashers to maximize efficiency.
But foreign suppliers should not think too smart, or too pricey, according to one prominent Chinese industry researcher.
Hu Xuehao, principal expert at China Electric Power Research Institute, says leading AMI technology being developed in the U.S. and Europe is often much more advanced than China requires at this point. 'Our AMI development has to depend on demand,' he said.
In a spirited answer to a question about whether China would buy metering equipment from foreign suppliers, Hu told a regional smart grid conference Tuesday in Shanghai that China's electrical network has the technological sophistication to run the most advanced products but doesn't always need them.
Take, for instance, new wireless meters that allow communication between homes and power grids. While an important advancement, Hu said, they are useless in apartment buildings, like those in many part of China, that place their metering systems below ground level. 'I can't pay for functions I don't need,' he said.
Hu also noted that American-made meters being offered in China tend to cost over $100 per residential unit. At over ten times his personal monthly power bill, he said, that's 'too expensive for Chinese residences.'
Hu sounded particularly critical of GE. During a presentation earlier in the day, he took the company to task for wanting to sell equipment to China 'directly,' meaning it would offer the same equipment in China as it does in the U.S. 'But I think we can accept your meters if they follow China's standards,' Hu said.
A spokesman for GE didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
At another point Tuesday, Hu said 'the United States standardization is not appropriate for the Chinese market,' adding that European standards get closer.
China's top power supplier, State Grid, announced its own set of standards earlier this year.
Shortly after making his comments, Hu sat on a panel of power experts where the issue of standards was raised again. On the panel, Yeoungjin Chae, a manager at Korea Power Exchange, happily noted that his USB computer device was made in the Philippines and plugs effortlessly into his China-made laptop but lamented the incompatibility of electrical plugs from country to country. In adopting 'smart grid' technology, Chae added, 'Korea believes international cooperation is the most important part of the business. You have to convert a whole lot of devices that were not connected before.'
Panel moderator Richard Schomberg, chairman of Smart Grid Strategic Group, echoed that sentiment, as did a Japanese member of the panel who chimed in by saying: 'These kinds of tiny stuff do count.'
'We have our standards in China, but they can be internationalized,' Hu said. 'Internationalization is very important.'
James T. Areddy
The country is in the process of adopting a smart electrical grid, including Advanced Metering Infrastructure, or AMI, which includes equipment like meters for residences and companies.
China needs to update aging equipment and better link power producers, who tend to be in the northwest, with users, who tend to be located in the coastal southeast. That need represents major business opportunities for foreign equipment suppliers like General Electric Co., Siemens AG and Alcatel-Lucent, who are lining up to help build out smart grid and AMI.
GE has estimated the market at $60 billion over the next decade.
The presence of so many opportunities, however, raises questions about how much sacrifice global technology companies are willing to make in order to grab them: As in other sectors, foreign participants hoping to gain access to China's smart grid market may need to tailor their products for China, lower prices and risk having proprietary technology stolen by local competitors.
The aim is to design ways for the world's No. 1 energy consumer to more intelligently use electricity by employing technology to control appliances and supply power only when and where it is needed. Think smart electrical meters in homes that are linked to power suppliers and able to alert customers and producers to expected usage surges, adjust pricing on the fly and control the start-up of devices like dishwashers to maximize efficiency.
But foreign suppliers should not think too smart, or too pricey, according to one prominent Chinese industry researcher.
Hu Xuehao, principal expert at China Electric Power Research Institute, says leading AMI technology being developed in the U.S. and Europe is often much more advanced than China requires at this point. 'Our AMI development has to depend on demand,' he said.
In a spirited answer to a question about whether China would buy metering equipment from foreign suppliers, Hu told a regional smart grid conference Tuesday in Shanghai that China's electrical network has the technological sophistication to run the most advanced products but doesn't always need them.
Take, for instance, new wireless meters that allow communication between homes and power grids. While an important advancement, Hu said, they are useless in apartment buildings, like those in many part of China, that place their metering systems below ground level. 'I can't pay for functions I don't need,' he said.
Hu also noted that American-made meters being offered in China tend to cost over $100 per residential unit. At over ten times his personal monthly power bill, he said, that's 'too expensive for Chinese residences.'
Hu sounded particularly critical of GE. During a presentation earlier in the day, he took the company to task for wanting to sell equipment to China 'directly,' meaning it would offer the same equipment in China as it does in the U.S. 'But I think we can accept your meters if they follow China's standards,' Hu said.
A spokesman for GE didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
At another point Tuesday, Hu said 'the United States standardization is not appropriate for the Chinese market,' adding that European standards get closer.
China's top power supplier, State Grid, announced its own set of standards earlier this year.
Shortly after making his comments, Hu sat on a panel of power experts where the issue of standards was raised again. On the panel, Yeoungjin Chae, a manager at Korea Power Exchange, happily noted that his USB computer device was made in the Philippines and plugs effortlessly into his China-made laptop but lamented the incompatibility of electrical plugs from country to country. In adopting 'smart grid' technology, Chae added, 'Korea believes international cooperation is the most important part of the business. You have to convert a whole lot of devices that were not connected before.'
Panel moderator Richard Schomberg, chairman of Smart Grid Strategic Group, echoed that sentiment, as did a Japanese member of the panel who chimed in by saying: 'These kinds of tiny stuff do count.'
'We have our standards in China, but they can be internationalized,' Hu said. 'Internationalization is very important.'
James T. Areddy
没有评论:
发表评论