District Cooling development in China While district cooling (DC) still is at its beginning in India, the DCmarket in China is fast growing. In China, the district cooling market at present (>5.9 TWh) is more extensive than both the Japanese (3.5 TWh) and European (3 TWh) markets and could reach the level of North America (25 TWh) within five years if it grows by up to 5.39 TWh yearly as projected.
Figure A: A study performed for AsianDevelopment Bank (ADB)* shows some strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) for district cooling in China:
OPPORTUNITIES Huge market growth potential of 5.39 TWh or 4.2 GW yearly, larger than the current Japanese district cooling market as well as the European market Greater environmental awareness among the general public and within government Increased public expectations of comfort Success stories THREATS Consumer protection measures related to pricing and quality of services Unsatisfactory feasibility studies Delayed load buildup and high processor occupancy Inexperienced project planners, designers,
STRENGTHS 25%–50% increase in energy efficiency Improved environmental efficiency
long life span of up to 50 years, leading to lower maintenance cost and better management Financial competitiveness (given the right preconditions) compared with traditional split air conditioners WEAKNESSES High initial costs (front-loaded investments) Financially competitive only for areas with relatively high energy density Lack of incentives and regulations Need for well-structured and coordinated planning, design, and proj
and implementers
Qianhai District Cooling System (DCS) in Shenzhen, China
The cooling plants are attached to main buildings to save land resources, and the Qianhai authority has guided the enterprises in the free trade area to use the DCS by making it one of the conditions of land transfers. In the future, the developers plan to apply seawater, surplus heat, and reused water-cooling technologies to optimize resource use and increase energy efficiency in the area. The DCS business model is that the Qianhai authorities own the plant buildings and the pipe network. In contrast, Qianhai Energy owns the plant equipment and also operates the cooling facilities.
In the masterplan for the Qianhai DCS, Shenzhen, China, there are 10 district cooling plants with a total cooling area of 19 MMm2 in an area of 15 km2. • The pipeline network length: 90 km. • The full cooling capacity is 400,000RT, with energy storage: 4000 MWh. • The total investment is expected to reach RMB 4B. Qianhai has set an excellent example for low-carbon development. Over the past few years, Qianhai has been working on DCS, a highly efficient and energy-saving energy consumption model. Two centralized cooling plants, which use ice thermal storage technology, have been put into service to provide chilled water to nearby office buildings. Other renewable energy sources, such as a seawater condenser system, gray water utilization condenser, steam waste heat, and solar energy, have been studied and may be used in other cooling plants under construction in Qianhai's district cooling system.
For further information please contact: Zhaohui Wang, wangzh@qhholding.com
* District Cooling in the People's Republic of China Status and Development Potential, January 2017, ADB
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