Building the Bridge to 100% Renewable Grids: Insights from Sungrow’s Henry Liu

At the Sungrow MEA PV & ESS Summit in Dubai, SolarQuarter spoke with Dr. Henry Liu, Director of Sungrow’s Grid Solution Department, to explore how grid-forming inverters are shaping the future of renewable integration. He shared Sungrow’s pioneering journey, real-world deployments across regions, and the opportunities and regulatory requirements that lie ahead.

Dr. Liu emphasized his unique role as a bridge between Sungrow’s R&D teams and global clients—translating complex engineering into practical solutions while ensuring customer needs inform future innovations. Representing Sungrow, he brings both scale and technical depth to the conversation. This perspective offers a rare, holistic view of both technology and application in the path toward 100% renewable grids.

How is Sungrow innovating grid-forming inverter technology to ensure stable and reliable integration of renewables into increasingly complex grids?

At Sungrow, our journey in grid-forming technology began nearly two decades ago. We recognized early on that inverters would eventually need to take on roles traditionally fulfilled by synchronous generators. Since our first Virtual Synchronous Generator (VSG) prototype in 2006, we have continuously refined our approach.

Our innovation has focused on advanced control algorithms that ensure stability under a wide range of grid conditions. For example, we pioneered the use of virtual impedance techniques to enhance system damping, reduce fault currents, and minimize harmonic distortions. These innovations have allowed our inverters to provide reliable support even in weak or highly dynamic grids.

Equally important, Sungrow works closely with transmission system operators (TSOs) worldwide to align technical development with real-world system needs. Our goal is to build a bridge between renewable energy and conventional power systems—delivering solutions that guarantee stability, security, and resilience in increasingly complex grids.

Could you share some real-world deployments where grid-forming technology played a crucial role in enhancing grid resilience and stability?

Certainly. We have several deployments that highlight the tangible benefits of grid-forming inverters:

• United Kingdom: Just before Christmas in a recent year, our grid-forming inverters played a pivotal role in avoiding major instability events on the National Grid. The operator even sent us a formal letter of appreciation, recognizing the critical contribution to system reliability.
• United States (Indiana): We successfully conducted black-start operations by replacing traditional diesel generators with our grid-forming technology. This enabled smooth recovery from outages, particularly by managing transformer inrush currents effectively.
• Northwest China: In remote, high-altitude villages where extending transmission lines was prohibitively costly, Sungrow provided grid-forming solutions that delivered reliable electricity supply. This enabled modern communications and lighting for communities that had never had consistent access to power.
• NEOM Project, Saudi Arabia: In this pioneering hydrogen project, we provided grid-forming solutions that enabled the production of hydrogen using 100% renewable energy—without relying on diesel backup.
• Saudi Arabia (Phase II, 2.6 GW project): Our grid-forming technology supported off-grid commissioning, reducing commissioning time by nearly 50% for our EPC partners.

These projects demonstrate how grid-forming solutions are not just theoretical—they deliver real value in diverse and challenging environments.

What technical and regulatory requirements do you see for the large-scale adoption of grid-forming inverters, and how is Sungrow addressing them?

There are two main categories of challenges:

Technical Challenges

• Today, many manufacturers claim to offer grid-forming inverters, yet there is no universal validation framework to ensure performance. Unlike grid-following systems, where a loss of stability results in limited revenue loss, instability in grid-forming systems could jeopardize the entire power system.
• Interoperability is another issue. In the conventional power sector, different components (turbines, controllers, generators) can be sourced from various suppliers and integrated reliably. Grid-forming systems, however, require highly tuned coordination—misalignments in DC design or communications can cause large-scale failures.
• Incidents, such as one in Australia where a DC-side design gap led to severe oscillations, highlight the risks of inadequate integration.

Sungrow addresses these risks by investing in extensive system studies and simulations. We employ hundreds of power system engineers who collaborate with TSOs to validate solutions under diverse operating conditions before deployment.

Regulatory Requirements

• Standards for grid-forming operation are still evolving. While regions such as the US, Australia, and Northern Europe are establishing clear frameworks, others—particularly in the Middle East and Africa—are still developing consistent guidelines.
• We actively share our global experience with policymakers to help shape these emerging standards. Encouragingly, we see growing recognition of the critical role of grid-forming technology, and many clients now specify it as a requirement in their projects.

In summary, overcoming these hurdles requires collaboration: clear validation standards, system-level design approaches, and active engagement with regulators and operators.

Q4. Looking ahead, how do you envision grid-forming technology evolving over the next 5–10 years in supporting the global transition to 100% renewable-powered grids?

Over the next decade, I expect grid-forming technology to become the backbone of renewable integration. A few key developments will drive this evolution:

• Adaptability Across Grid Conditions: Current technologies are sometimes optimized for either strong or weak grids, but not both. We are already advancing designs that can perform reliably across the entire spectrum of grid strengths, ensuring seamless operation under all conditions.
• Enhanced Reliability: Improvements will come not only from better control algorithms but also from robust hardware design, DC-side integration, and power conversion systems. These enhancements will reduce vulnerabilities and increase system resilience.
• Wider Deployment in Large-Scale Projects: As costs decline and validation frameworks mature, grid-forming inverters will move from pilot projects to being standard in utility-scale deployments worldwide.
• Support for Sector Coupling: Beyond electricity, grid-forming technology will play a role in enabling hydrogen production, e-mobility infrastructure, and integrated multi-energy systems.

Ultimately, I see grid-forming inverters becoming the critical enabler of 100% renewable grids—delivering the stability and flexibility needed to replace conventional synchronous generation entirely.