China Accounts for Half of Global Installed Capacity in New Energy Storage

China accounted for approximately 50 percent of the world's total installed capacity of new energy storage by the end of 2025, according to a report by the National Energy Administration. Cumulative national capacity reached 136 gigawatts (351 gigawatt-hours), marking an 84.3 percent increase year-on-year and more than 40 times the level recorded at the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period. Lithium-ion batteries maintained a dominant share of 96.1 percent, while northern and northwestern regions accounted for over 60 percent of total installations.

China's rapid rollout of new energy storage underscores its central place in the global clean energy transition, representing half of global capacity and providing crucial flexibility for large-scale grid integration.

China reached a major milestone in its national clean energy transition, accounting for approximately 50 percent of the world's cumulative installed capacity of new energy storage by the end of 2025, according to data from the National Energy Administration (NEA) published in the China New Energy Storage Development Report (2026). By the end of 2025, nationwide cumulative installed capacity for new energy storage reached 136 million kilowatts (136 gigawatts) and 351 million kilowatt-hours (351 gigawatt-hours). This reflects an 84.3 percent increase from the previous year and a growth of more than 40 times compared to the end of China's 13th Five-Year Plan period. Worldwide, cumulative installed capacity for new energy storage stood at roughly 280 million kilowatts, representing a year-on-year increase of about 67 percent. During 2025, China's new energy storage capacity crossed the 100 million kilowatt threshold for the first time. The total installed scale rose to more than double that of China's traditional pumped hydro storage capacity, making new energy storage a key supporting force for the country's new electric power system and a core industry in national energy strategy. Xu Jilin, deputy director of the NEA's Department of Energy Conservation and Technological Equipment, stated that China's new energy storage sector progressed from early commercial adoption into a new phase of large-scale development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period. Geographically, capacity remains concentrated in resource-rich northern zones. North China reached 44.131 million kilowatts (123.302 million kilowatt-hours), while Northwest China registered 38.382 million kilowatts (117.338 million kilowatt-hours). Combined, North and Northwest China accounted for 60.7 percent of the country's total new energy storage capacity. On the technology front, lithium-ion battery systems maintained overwhelming market dominance. In 2025, lithium-ion battery storage capacity reached 131 million kilowatts and 331 million kilowatt-hours, representing 96.1 percent of the national total. While long-duration storage industrialization is accelerating and alternative technology routes continue to be explored, lithium-ion batteries remain the primary driver of China's storage deployment.