China’s battery storage capacity doubles in 2024

China’s electrochemical energy storage industry saw explosive growth in 2024, with total installed capacity more than doubling year-on-year, according to a report released by the China Electricity Council (CEC) on March 29. The “2024 Statistical Report on Electrochemical Energy Storage Power Stations” highlights rapid expansion, larger project sizes, and continued improvements in operational efficiency and safety as key trends for the year.

A total of 515 new battery storage stations were commissioned, adding 37 GW/91 GWh – more than twice the new capacity added in 2023. Of this, 74% came from utility-scale assets over 100 MW, marking a clear shift toward large, centralized systems. By the end of 2024, China’s cumulative capacity reached 62 GW/141 GWh. Standalone storage and renewable-paired systems accounted for 95% of all installations.

Deployment remained concentrated by region. Ten provinces, including Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Jiangsu and Shandong contributed more than 80% of new capacity. Seventeen provinces now have more than 1 GW in total storage capacity, with four provinces surpassing 5 GW.

Standalone energy storage was the primary growth driver, with 23 GW added – up 150% year-on-year and accounting for 63% of total new capacity. Large standalone projects achieved average daily charge-discharge cycles of 1.5 and a utilization index of 52%.

There was significant improvement in China’s co-located segment, too. A total of 13.1 GW of renewable-paired systems was added to the fleet. Utilization metrics for these systems improved significantly, averaging 177 full cycles per year, a 73-cycle increase over 2023, and saw a 15-percentage point improvement in efficiency index.

Commercial and industrial (C&I) storage saw stable operations with daily usage, though average utilization hours declined due to shortened discharge durations.

Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries dominated the market, comprising over 96% of capacity. Alternative chemistries such as sodium-ion and flow batteries held less than 4% share. Two-hour systems were in the majority, representing 67% of energy capacity.

Operational performance also improved. Average conversion efficiency rose to 88.75%, with overall system efficiency reaching 81.71%. Newly commissioned stations showed even better performance, with some provinces like Guangxi and Hubei exceeding 91% efficiency.

No major safety incidents were reported in 2024. Station availability reached 0.98, though new plants had 40% more unplanned outages than older ones, suggesting integration and equipment challenges.

Market concentration increased. CATL, BYD, EVE, Hithium and Rept Battero held nearly 70% of the battery market. HyperStrong and Sungrow led among integrators, with the top five accounting for 38.5% of installations. Leading players also dominated core systems. The top five companies had a 56% share of battery management systems (BMS); while two companies controlled 54% of the power conversion system (PCS) market.

Despite strong growth, performance disparities remain. Large renewable-paired systems had half the utilization rates of smaller ones, highlighting a need for better dispatch and control.

Technological innovation is lagging, however. New battery types and long-duration storage – more than four hours – remain rare, with less than 1% market share.

In the future, policy support is expected to drive further growth. The CEC forecasts total capacity will exceed 100 GW in 2025. A greater focus on intelligent operations and market-based trading is also expected to develop.