2026 Latest Energy Storage System Industry News

2026-04-12 20:03:19

1. Major National Policy Direction (December 2025 - March 2026)

Document No. 1710 by the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration clearly defines substation-level energy storage as grid-replacement energy storage, shifting from optional installation to a mandatory part of distribution network infrastructure.

It can directly replace transformer capacity expansion and line upgrades, reducing retrofit costs by 70%, allowing live-line installation, and shortening construction time by 90%.

The ull implementation of the capacity-based electricity price mechanism will create triple revenue streams: guaranteed capacity, peak-valley price differences, and frequency/voltage regulation ancillary services, completing the investment loop.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan, total grid investment exceeds 5 trillion RMB, with the distribution network accounting for more than 50%; substation-level household storage and containerized storage will become key players in grid bidding.

2. Large-Scale Implementation in Provinces (Q1 2026)

The five major provinces—Shandong, Jiangsu, Henan, Zhejiang, and Guangdong—start centralized construction, with Shandong filing over 100 substation-level energy storage projects in a single month.

Shandong new policy: Distributed/substation-level energy storage can independently participate in the electricity market, and transmitted electricity is exempt from transmission and distribution fees, increasing revenue per kWh by 20%.

The State Grid fully promotes standardized bidding for containerized prefabricated energy storage, substation cabinet storage, and integrated solar-storage-charging systems.

3. Industry Installed Capacity (Latest 2026 Data)

Domestic cumulative installed capacity of new energy storage exceeds 100 GW, accounting for over 50% of the global share.

Global new installations for 2026 are expected to reach 438~450 GWh, a 60% year-on-year increase, officially entering the TWh era.

AI computing centers are emerging as a new main force: 800V DC energy storage has become the standard for IDC, with one gigawatt of computing power matched by gigawatt-level energy storage.