Honorable Advisors

Professor Hong Rao, born on February 8, 1961, in Wuhan, Hubei Province, is a renowned expert in power system engineering technology. He is an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and serves as the Chief Technology Expert and Chairman of the Scientific Research Institute at China Southern Power Grid Company.

Professor Rao graduated in 1983 from the power system and its automation program at Huazhong Institute of Technology. He has received numerous accolades throughout his career, including being named a National Outstanding Scientific and Technological Worker in 2011, receiving the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation Science and Technology Progress Award in 2016, being recognized as an Outstanding Talent in the Guangdong Provincial Special Support Program in 2017, and winning the Second National Innovation Competition Award in 2020. In 2021, he was elected as an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

Professor Rao has dedicated his career to the research, design, and construction of major DC transmission projects and the operation of AC-DC hybrid power grids. He has made significant contributions to the development of China’s independent DC transmission system design technology and has established an internationally leading real-time simulation platform for large power grids. His research has provided insights into the safety impacts of multiple DC transmissions on power grids, leading to the development of risk analysis and control methods for densely DC-fed power grids. He has also overcome the technical challenges of ultra-high voltage flexible DC transmission and facilitated the integration of more DC systems into large power grids.

He has led the design and construction of 11 major DC projects, including China’s first independent ±500kV DC transmission project and the world’s first ultra-high voltage multi-terminal flexible DC project. Additionally, he established the National Key Laboratory for DC Transmission Technology.

As of February 2022, Professor Rao has published 37 papers, according to the Chinese Academy of Engineering. His numerous accolades include one First Prize and one Second Prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award, four provincial and ministerial-level First Prizes, and 25 granted invention patents. His pioneering work has significantly advanced the field of power system engineering and contributed to the reliable and efficient operation of modern power grids.