China sets 2030 battery targets and backs sodium-ion and solid-state technologies

China has issued a national five-year plan for its battery industry that targets lithium batteries lasting 15,000 charge cycles and the first large-scale use of all-solid-state batteries by 2030, while backing sodium-ion and flow batteries for energy storage.

The New-Type Battery Industry Development Plan for the 15th Five-Year Plan Period was issued jointly by seven government bodies, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the National Energy Administration, Vincent Shaw reported Oct. 1 in pv magazine. The plan is dated Sept. 14 and was released Sept. 28.

It also aims for defect rates at leading manufacturers to reach parts-per-billion levels. Unlike some earlier industrial policies, it sets no capacity or output-value target.

Lithium-ion remains the core technology, but the plan calls for sodium-ion and flow batteries to develop alongside it, and for research into metal-air, metal-sulfur and nuclear batteries. Sodium-ion is attractive for stationary storage, where cost, cycle life, safety and supply-chain diversity matter more than energy density, though the plan sets no deployment target for it.

The plan targets storage deployment at power plants, on the grid, in industrial parks and at data centers. The industry ministry said authorities will also tighten capacity early-warning systems, quality oversight and regulation of price competition to avoid sharp swings in supply and demand, signaling a shift from rapid capacity growth toward quality and discipline.

This brief is based on reporting by Vincent Shaw, published Oct. 1, 2026, in pv magazine. Read the original: https://www.pv-magazine.com/2026/10/01/china-sets-2030-battery-targets-backs-sodium-ion-and-solid-state/