China's battery giants boost global presence as exports surge 220%

China’s battery producers are increasingly dominating global energy storage markets, with exports surging more than 220% year over year in the first half of 2025. The boom follows a sharp slowdown in domestic utilization rates last year, when factory output averaged just one-third of total capacity due to heavy overinvestment and market saturation.

According to data from the China Energy Storage Alliance, Chinese firms secured nearly 200 overseas orders totaling 186 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in the first six months of 2025. The Middle East, Europe, and Australia accounted for almost 60% of these shipments, while only 5.34 GWh—less than 3%—went to the United States, where steep tariffs imposed by the Trump administration have slowed imports.

In April, Washington introduced duties of up to 3,521% on solar imports from Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Thailand. The move also affected Chinese solar giants such as JinkoSolar and Trina Solar. As a result, Chinese energy companies are increasingly diversifying their production bases to reduce exposure to U.S. trade restrictions. Currently, about 80% of their overseas solar manufacturing capacity—including wafer, cell, and module production—is located in Southeast Asia.

“The industry used to say you either go overseas or exit the game,” said Gao Jifan, chairman of Trina Solar. “Now, because of tariffs, exporting alone isn’t enough—you have to localize production abroad.”

At home, China’s battery storage market is also gaining momentum. Beijing’s National Energy Administration recently unveiled a 250 billion yuan ($32 billion) investment plan to build 180 gigawatts (GW) of new energy storage capacity by 2027. As a result, 47 of 55 listed Chinese energy storage companies reported profits in the first half of 2025.

Industry leader Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. (CATL) posted operating revenue of RMB178.89 billion ($25.15 billion) for the first half of 2025, up 7.3% from a year earlier, while net profit jumped 33.3% to RMB30.49 billion. The company credited its growth to robust global demand for energy storage cells, driven by the accelerating clean energy transition.

Global investment in battery storage is expected to soar in the coming decade. Research firm Wood Mackenzie projects $1.2 trillion in new investment by 2034, supporting the addition of more than 5,900 GW of wind and solar power worldwide. The report stresses that advanced, grid-forming batteries will be key to maintaining power stability as renewable energy expands.