A late but decisive move to ESS: LONGi takes majority control of PotisEdge

LONGi Green Energy has moved decisively to reposition itself in the global clean-energy value chain, acquiring effective control of battery storage maker PotisEdge in a deal that marks its strongest strategic pivot since becoming the world’s biggest solar-wafer producer.

A filing published on Nov. 13 by the Shaanxi Administration for Market Regulation shows the company will obtain about 62% (61.9998%) of PotisEdge’s voting rights through a mix of equity purchase, capital injection and voting-rights entrustment. The acquisition gives LONGi a ready-built foothold in energy storage at a moment when the solar PV sector faces collapsing prices and industry-wide losses.

The transaction follows a period of rapid momentum for PotisEdge. Just weeks before the filing, the Suzhou-based firm signed a strategic agreement with Australia’s Club Solar to deploy 2 GWh of residential storage systems, underscoring its strength in overseas markets.

LONGi, which dominates the supply of silicon wafers and modules, has had relatively limited exposure to storage. But after seven consecutive loss-making quarters and a 2024 net loss of CNY 8.6 billion, the company is under pressure to build a second growth engine after its hydrogen venture stalled amid slow commercialisation.

PotisEdge, founded in 2015, has built full-stack R&D capabilities across five core system technologies – integrated Centralized Cell Safety Monitoring/Management System (iCCS), BMS, PCS, EMS and TMS – and has filed nearly 350 patents. It ranks second globally among DC-side storage-system integrators and top six in China’s commercial and industrial segment. Its 31GWh of global capacity and more than 10GWh of grid-connected systems place it among the most internationally active Chinese storage firms.

Its rapid financing history — attracting more than 30 strategic investors, including CRRC Capital, GoodWe and Maxwell — made it one of the highest-valued independent integrators in China’s storage sector.

LONGi’s move makes it the last of China’s top module manufacturers — alongside Trina Solar, JinkoSolar, JA Solar and Canadian Solar — to formally enter the storage business. But the timing aligns with surging sector economics. China’s storage industry generated CNY 493.1bn in the first three quarters of 2025, with profit up 38% year-on-year, far outpacing revenue growth.

The challenges remain significant. LONGi will need to integrate PotisEdge’s technology and overseas channels effectively to differentiate itself and compete with battery giants like CATL and BYD.

But for China’s largest solar manufacturer, the acquisition marks the clearest signal yet that the future of the industry lies not in solar panels alone, but in dispatchable, storage-enabled clean power.