China Energy Engineering Corporation’s (CEEC) auction for 25 GWh of lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery systems resulted in a record-low quoted tariff of CNY 0.37/Wh (~$0.051), a 30% year-over-year decrease from 2024.

The tender was structured into three packages based on system duration and received bids from more than 70 companies. For the one-hour systems, totaling 3 GW/3 GWh, prices ranged from CNY 0.673 to CNY 0.89/Wh (~$0.093–$0.124/Wh), with an average bid of CNY 0.7863/Wh (~$0.109/Wh).

The two-hour systems covered 6 GW/12 GWh. Bids in this category fell between CNY 0.416 and CNY 0.5764/Wh (~$0.058–$0.08/Wh), with an average price of CNY 0.4646/Wh (~$0.064/Wh). Notably, ten companies submitted nearly identical top bids, clustered between CNY 0.428 and CNY 0.44/Wh (~$0.059–$0.061/Wh).

The most competitive pricing appeared in the four-hour systems segment, totaling 2.5 GW/10 GWh. Here, bids ranged from CNY 0.37 to CNY 0.495/Wh (~$0.051–$0.068/Wh), with an average of CNY 0.4249/Wh (~$0.059/Wh). The lowest bid of CNY0.37/Wh (~$0.051) set a new low for the industry.

China’s leading battery manufacturers, including CATL, BYD, Sungrow, and Envision Energy, participated in the auction.

More than 60% of the tendered capacity is expected to support standalone battery energy storage systems, designed to provide services like peak shaving and frequency regulation.

Other deployments will be hybridized with renewable energy sources, particularly wind and solar, to enhance dispatchability and grid stability. A smaller share is earmarked for commercial and industrial users seeking to exploit time-of-use pricing and manage demand peaks.

According to the China Energy Storage Alliance, China added 13.3 GW/32.1 GWh of new energy storage capacity, a YoY increase of 52.5% in power and 41.8% in energy until May 2025.

Global energy storage capacity additions are expected to grow by 35% in 2025 to 94 GW or 247 GWh, according to BloombergNEF’s latest outlook.

Corporate funding for energy storage companies, including venture capital, debt, and public market financing, totaled $2.2 billion across 31 deals in Q1 2025, according to Mercom Capital Group’s recently released Q1 2025 Funding and M&A Report for Energy Storage.