China's energy storage battery output exceeded 420 gigawatt-hours in the first half of 2026, up 110% year-on-year, and the domestic content rate of key production equipment surpassed 90%, according to data released at the 2026 World Energy Storage Conference in Ningde, southeast China's Fujian Province, on Thursday.

The two figures were disclosed by Vice Minister Xiong Jijun of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). He also cited previously released data showing that China's cumulative installed capacity of new-type energy storage reached over 153 million kW by the end of June, a 50-fold increase from the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

One of the conference's core messages is that China's energy storage sector must move from scale expansion to innovation-driven growth and guard against rat race competition that erodes value.

The MIIT said it will improve early-warning mechanisms for production capacity, adding that the sector is shifting from policy-driven to market-driven development, with revenue streams diversifying into energy trading, supporting services and capacity compensation.

Industry leaders, including Zeng Yuqun, chairman of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL), argued that energy storage is becoming a "new type of infrastructure" for power systems, not just a supplement to renewables.

The MIIT's Equipment Industry Development Center released a report on the development and outlook of the new-type energy storage industry. It notes that independent energy storage accounted for 69.3% of new power capacity in the first half of 2026, up 13.9 percentage points year on year.

Projects are becoming larger and longer in duration, the report says. Those of 100 MW or more made up 72% of installations, and 4-hour-plus projects accounted for 27.6%. Exports remain strong, with overseas orders signed in the first half reaching 298 GWh, up 83% year on year. Lithium-ion batteries dominate, representing 94.06% of new installations.

The report predicts that during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), competition will shift from low-price marketing to technology value and international compliance.