By Rong Xiandong (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-08-02 14:22

The State Electricity Regulatory Commission yesterday announced new rules on supervision of power grid enterprises' purchase of electricity generated by renewable sources. The rules will become effective on September 1, 2007.

According to the regulations, the commission and its local agencies are responsible to supervise such purchases.

Power distributors must include into their power grids all electricity from renewable energies, including hydraulic, wind, biomass and geothermal power, and solar energy, said the rules.

Power grid enterprises and electricity distributors are held responsible for misconduct that causes losses to producers of renewable energies, according to the rules.

Misconduct includes: failure to construct necessary facilities to connect the electricity to the power grids or failure to do so in time; refusal to sign electricity purchases and distribution agreements with the producers or purposefully setting obstacles to the agreements; failure to provide services related to the connection of electricity or failure to do so in time; or failure to give priority to electricity from renewable energies in electricity distribution.

If power grids fail to eliminate misconduct, they will be subject to fines less than the equivalent of electricity producers losses that result from the misconduct, according to the regulations.

The regulations also require provincial power grid enterprises and electricity generators to regularly report to the local electricity regulators on issues about volume, price, and payment of electricity from renewable energies.