One month after the suspension of mandatory energy storage requirements, the energy storage market has become even more vibrant. Local governments are attempting to find a new balance between policy guidance and market-driven initiatives.
On February 9, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration jointly issued a notice titled “Guidelines for Deepening Market-oriented Reform of Renewable Energy Grid Pricing to Promote High-quality Development of Renewable Energy” (hereinafter referred to as “Document No. 136”). This document explicitly stated that energy storage configuration should not be a prerequisite for the approval, grid connection, or online operation of new renewable energy projects. Following the issuance of this policy, there was significant turbulence in the energy storage sector, leading to concerns about a decline in energy storage demand.
Over a month has passed since the release of this policy, and current observations from Huaxia Energy Network indicate a markedly different reality—a wave of new policies encouraging energy storage integration is being introduced by local governments. Projects that integrate sources, networks, loads, and storage are gaining attention, and the demand for distributed solar energy storage is increasing day by day. Overall, the energy storage sector is rapidly transitioning from being policy-driven to market-driven, ushering in a robust new era after a short adjustment period.
Local Interest in Energy Storage Is Rising
After the mandate for compulsory energy storage was halted, provinces such as Yunnan and Guizhou quickly launched new energy storage integration policies. On February 10, just one day after the release of Document No. 136, the Guizhou Provincial Energy Bureau published the “Draft Management Measures for Wind and Photovoltaic Power Projects in Guizhou Province“. This document specifies that projects included in the province’s annual construction plan for wind and photovoltaic energy must implement guaranteed grid connections and configure energy storage of at least 10% of the installed capacity (sufficient for 2 hours of operation) or purchase energy storage services. Projects that are not completed within the stipulated timeframe will not be allowed to connect to the grid.
The document also encourages the orderly planning of new energy storage projects based on regional renewable energy construction scale, electricity load levels, and grid demands. It promotes the synchronous commissioning of new energy storage projects in areas with grid constraints and encourages project investors to voluntarily increase their energy storage configurations and purchases of energy storage services.
In early March, the Yunnan Provincial Energy Bureau released the “Draft Management Measures for the Construction and Operation of Energy Storage Projects in Yunnan Province“, which included 175 renewable energy projects slated for development in 2025, with a total installed capacity of 14.48905 million kilowatts. These projects are also required to configure adjustment resources at 10% of the installed capacity, which can be achieved through shared energy storage services.
Within a month of Document No. 136’s issuance, two provinces have rolled out policies encouraging energy storage integration. It remains to be seen whether other provinces will follow suit, which is a point of interest for industry professionals.
The national suspension of mandatory energy storage aims to allow the energy storage industry to return to its market essence, letting real demand dictate actions. However, for local governments, energy storage continues to be a crucial tool for enhancing renewable energy absorption and ensuring energy security. By implementing more flexible energy storage policies, local governments are seeking to find a new balance between policy guidance and market forces.
Notably, projects previously mandated to include energy storage were primarily centralized renewable energy projects. Now, policies encouraging energy storage in distributed renewable generation projects are becoming more common. For instance, on February 10, alongside the “Guizhou Wind and Solar Power Management Measures“, a supporting policy titled “Implementation Guidelines for the Development and Construction of Distributed Photovoltaic Power Generation in Guizhou Province” was also released. This allows county-level energy authorities to guide investors to voluntarily build or lease distributed energy storage facilities based on local distributed photovoltaic development conditions.
On March 17, the Ningxia Development and Reform Commission released the “Implementation Guidelines for the Development and Construction of Distributed Photovoltaic Power Generation in Ningxia“, which supports deep cooperation between local governments and upstream and downstream photovoltaic enterprises and financial institutions to drive diversified applications of “photovoltaics + energy storage” and integrated energy storage charging solutions.
Leveraging Source-Grid-Load-Storage Integration
Since the announcement of Document No. 136, the term “Source-Grid-Load-Storage Integration” has increasingly appeared in the work documents of state-owned power enterprises and local governments. In March alone, several significant announcements were made. On the 5th, Shandong issued a notification on implementing testing rules for source-grid-load-storage integration, promoting the use of this approach to enhance renewable energy absorption and support the construction of new power systems. On the 7th, China Energy Engineering Group announced its efforts to consolidate the entire energy and computing power supply chain through this integration. On the 12th, the government report from Luoyang, Henan, noted plans to implement 40 source-grid-load-storage projects in 2025. On the 18th, the Lingbao City government in Henan stated its intention to invest 1 billion yuan in a source-grid-load-storage project and plan for over 14 additional projects by year-end.
Source-grid-load-storage integration is a novel operating model that plans and operates power sources, grids, loads, and storage as a whole. This model benefits multiple stakeholders: for local governments, it effectively reduces carbon emissions and opens new pathways for renewable energy absorption, contributing to sustainable development goals; for power generation companies, it represents a new attempt to adapt to the market-driven reforms of renewable energy pricing; and for consumers, it provides a cost-effective alternative similar to building new renewable self-supply power plants, enhancing their market competitiveness.
It is noteworthy that the financial sector is also targeting source-grid-load-storage integration projects. Recently, the Weihai branch of the Bank of China issued the first loan for a source-grid-load-storage pilot project in Shandong. Given the high costs and lengthy construction cycles associated with these projects, financial support from institutions alleviates funding pressures on developers and allows banks to optimize their credit structures while enhancing financial services to the real economy.
Given the multiple benefits associated with source-grid-load-storage integration, it is unsurprising that it is being actively promoted across various regions.
The Unstoppable Rise of Solar Storage Integration
Document No. 136 clearly states that all renewable energy projects coming online after June 1, 2025, must participate in market competition. In response, Liu Yafang, a part-time professor at Zhejiang University, has emphasized at multiple forums that renewable energy companies must consider system adjustment costs and energy quality control costs to achieve favorable returns in future electricity market competition. Energy storage will become an essential strategic partner for the high-quality development of renewable energy.
On March 23, Xiexin Energy Technology (SZ:002015) disclosed in a research report that green electricity generating companies will shift from dependence on subsidies to market competition, highlighting the increasing importance of technological innovation, such as solar power forecasting and energy storage integration.
Due to the daily fluctuations of solar energy and its synergy with energy storage for daytime adjustment, the integration of solar and storage is gaining significant attention in the industry. At the first large-scale renewable energy exhibition in China after the release of Document No. 136, held in Jinan on March 5, both photovoltaic and energy storage companies prominently featured solar-storage integrated products and solutions.
For example, Sungrow Power Supply (SZ:300274) introduced an integrated solution for “zero carbon parks, zero carbon homes, and zero carbon industries,” fully covering products, scenarios, data, and services through integrated technology involving solar, storage, charging, and cloud services. JA Solar (SZ:002459) unveiled a comprehensive solar module solution that caters to seven extreme environments, including deserts and oceans, along with accompanying energy storage systems.
Energy storage companies have also launched products specifically designed for photovoltaic applications. Pylontech (SH:688063), a leading domestic energy storage company, has released energy storage products tailored for scenarios like small commercial parks and low-voltage transformer stations, including a 113kWh air-cooled energy storage cabinet, and a 417kWh direct current cabinet for large commercial photovoltaic applications. Another company, Sig Energy, which is preparing for an IPO in Hong Kong, has introduced a commercial solar-storage system that supports flexible charging and discharging based on real-time solar generation and electricity load changes.
Moreover, recent product launches by various photovoltaic and energy storage companies also include solar-storage solutions targeted at the electricity spot market. For instance, Gree Watt has released the NEXA 2000, a new solar-storage product that combines inverter capabilities with expandable energy storage functions. “The NEXA 2000 includes time optimization features that allow charging from the grid during low-price periods and discharging stored electricity during high-price periods, significantly reducing electricity costs,” the company stated.
Both photovoltaic and energy storage companies are recognizing that solar power must be paired with energy storage to achieve greater returns in the electricity spot market, and this integration is opening vast market opportunities for both sectors.
