Source: National Energy Administration
Promote the large-scale development of new energy storage and significantly enhance the power system’s regulation capabilities.
— Interpretation of the “15th Five-Year Plan” for Building a New-Type Power System
Recently, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration released the “15th Five-Year Plan for Building a New-Type Power System” (hereinafter referred to as the “Plan”). Centered on establishing a new-type power system that is clean and low-carbon, secure and abundant, economically efficient, demand‑supply coordinated, and flexible and intelligent, the Plan balances development with safety, systematically outlines the direction and key priorities for China’s new‑type power system construction during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, and provides clear guidance and pathways for steering the high‑quality development of the power sector in this phase. As an essential component of the new‑type power system, advanced energy storage plays an irreplaceable role in enhancing grid regulation capabilities, facilitating the integration of renewable energy, and ensuring reliable peak‑load supply. The following provides a brief analysis of the Plan’s measures aimed at strengthening grid regulation and advancing the development of advanced energy storage.
I. The development of a new-type power system places higher demands on regulation capabilities.
At present, China’s installed capacity of new energy continues to grow rapidly, with annual additions exceeding 200 million kilowatts, and this trend is expected to persist during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. Based on actual operational data, by the end of 2025, the national wind power utilization rate stood at 94.3%, down 1.6 percentage points from 2024, while the photovoltaic power utilization rate was 94.8%, a decline of 2 percentage points compared with 2024. In some provinces where new energy has expanded particularly quickly, pressure on grid absorption has already become apparent. Meanwhile, during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, the nation’s average annual increase in electricity consumption is projected to be around 600 billion kilowatt-hours. The combined effects of volatile new‑energy output and rigid growth in electricity demand are placing significant strain on the power system, particularly in areas such as peak‑shaving, frequency regulation, and ensuring reliable supply during peak periods.
Through sustained development, China’s power system has seen a marked improvement in its regulation capacity. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the “West-to-East Power Transmission” capacity increased from 270 million kW to 340 million kW, and the installed capacity of pumped-storage hydropower exceeded 66 million kW. Meanwhile, the scale of flexibility upgrades for coal-fired power plants continued to expand, surpassing 450 million kW by the end of 2025. New‑type energy storage has also grown particularly rapidly, with nationwide commissioned capacity reaching 136 million kW/351 million kWh—more than 40 times the level at the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan.
The Plan specifies that by 2030, while total installed renewable capacity will exceed 2.8 billion kilowatts, the national renewable energy utilization rate will remain at a high level of around 90%. However, a gap persists between existing regulation capabilities and the demands of the new context; therefore, coordinated efforts are needed across generation, grid, load, and storage to ensure integrated planning of diverse flexibility resources and to strengthen alignment among scale, spatial distribution, and the development of renewable energy.
II. Coordinated Efforts Across the Generation, Grid, Load, and Storage Sectors to Enhance System Regulation Capabilities
The Plan seeks to enhance the power system’s regulation capabilities. During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, a coordinated approach will be adopted across generation, transmission, distribution, and storage, providing comprehensive support for the development of a new‑type power system.
In terms of pumped-storage hydropower development, the Plan calls for scientifically optimizing the spatial layout of pumped-storage power stations and building a number of facilities that contribute to regional grid regulation. By 2030, the nation’s installed capacity of pumped-storage hydropower is expected to reach approximately 160 million kilowatts. As the largest‑scale, most robustly supportive, longest‑lived, and most reliable form of energy storage, pumped-storage hydropower serves both provincial and regional power systems, as well as specific power sources.
In terms of coal‑power transition, the Plan calls for the implementation of a special initiative to upgrade next‑generation coal‑fired power plants, enhancing their capabilities for deep and rapid load‑following as well as efficient regulation, while refining the capacity‑based tariff structure for coal‑power. By 2030, the minimum generating output of combined heat and power units nationwide will be reduced to below 40%, and further flexibility is encouraged through integrated electricity‑heat coordination approaches such as thermal‑electrical decoupling. The role of coal‑power is steadily shifting from a baseload‑providing source to a supporting and regulating resource.
On the flexibility‑demand side, the Plan promotes the aggregation of diverse distributed resources—such as distributed generation, adjustable loads, and electric‑vehicle charging infrastructure—to participate in peak‑shaving and valley‑filling. By 2030, the nation’s demand‑side peak‑shaving capacity will exceed 100 million kilowatts, the maximum controllable capacity of virtual power plants will surpass 50 million kilowatts, and the aggregated adjustable charging capacity from vehicle‑to‑grid (V2G) interactions aims to reach 50 million kilowatts. With demand‑side resources dispersed yet collectively powerful, the system’s integration capabilities are becoming increasingly prominent.
In terms of grid interconnection and mutual assistance, the Plan continues to refine the regional main‑grid structure, promoting coordinated development across AC/DC transmission, between sending and receiving ends, and at all voltage levels. It seeks to unlock the potential for complementary electricity supply and demand within river basins and across regions, strengthen inter‑regional backup arrangements and temporary emergency support capabilities, and advance a series of projects to enhance inter‑regional power‑sharing capacity, thereby further facilitating the integrated and optimized allocation of resources among provinces.
III. Functional Positioning and Challenges of New-Generation Energy Storage in the New Context
The enhancement of power system regulation capacity and the strengthening of peak‑load supply assurance both hinge on the deep integration of energy storage as a critical ancillary resource. Among the various types of regulation resources, advanced energy storage—thanks to its rapid response, high‑precision control, and flexible deployment—is increasingly emerging as a key enabler for system balancing and reliable supply.
In terms of enhancing grid regulation capabilities, advanced energy storage systems can effectively mitigate the volatility and intermittency of renewable energy output. By 2025, the equivalent utilization hours of new‑type energy storage nationwide are projected to reach 1,195 hours, an increase of nearly 300 hours compared with 2024. Among these, the average utilization hours of energy storage co‑located with renewable sources are approximately 917 hours, up 19.7% year over year—equivalent to an additional 151 hours. The deployment and utilization of new‑type energy storage continue to rise, with its role in bolstering system regulation, facilitating the integration of renewables, and ensuring system safety and stability becoming increasingly prominent.
In terms of peak‑load supply assurance, advanced energy storage systems can rapidly discharge electricity during periods of high demand, effectively alleviating strain on the power grid. During the 2025 summer peak‑demand period, provinces including Jiangsu, Shandong, and Yunnan successively implemented province‑wide coordinated dispatch of such storage resources, with maximum discharge capacities reaching 7.14 million kW, 8.04 million kW, and 4.74 million kW, respectively. The simultaneous dispatch rate exceeded 95%, making these systems a critical asset for ensuring reliable peak‑load supply. At the national level, bolstering peak‑load capacity during high‑demand periods has been designated as one of the key tasks for the energy storage sector during the 15th Five‑Year Plan period.
In terms of supporting safe and stable grid operation, compressed air, flywheel, and gravitational energy storage systems, owing to their physical characteristics that align with those of synchronous generators, provide inertia, frequency regulation, and voltage support. Electrochemical energy storage systems employing grid-forming control can likewise deliver virtual inertia as well as active voltage and frequency support. Meanwhile, emerging energy storage technologies, with their rapid response and high precision, offer distinct advantages over conventional power sources in services such as frequency regulation and fast ramping. The Plan seeks to unlock the multifaceted capabilities of next-generation energy storage, including peak shaving, frequency regulation, voltage control, emergency reserve, ramp-rate management, and black-start capability.
While the development of new‑type energy storage has yielded significant results, it continues to face key challenges. First, the deployment and utilization efficiency of new‑type energy storage on the power‑source side still require improvement. Although current policies no longer make energy‑storage installation a prerequisite for connecting new renewable‑energy projects to the grid, as full market access for renewables advances, leveraging market mechanisms to incentivize storage integration on the renewable side—thereby enhancing the overall economic viability of such projects—will become a new paradigm for deep, coordinated operation between renewables and storage. Second, the role of grid‑side energy storage in peak‑shaving and ensuring supply stability remains to be strengthened. While the share of grid‑side installed capacity is increasing, the alignment between its spatial deployment and grid planning must be further enhanced. Moreover, most existing installations are grid‑following types, which provide insufficient inertia and voltage‑support capabilities in weak‑grid conditions, underscoring the urgent need to expand the application of grid‑forming technologies in the storage domain. Third, the diversified application scenarios for new‑type energy storage warrant further expansion. At present, such storage is primarily deployed on the power‑source and grid sides, with its use in distribution networks and smart microgrids still in the exploratory stage. As distributed renewable energy grows rapidly, rural and urban distribution grids are confronting emerging issues such as voltage violations and reverse‑direction overloads. In contexts like distribution substations, industrial parks, microgrids, and multi‑energy integration, the regulatory value of energy storage remains largely untapped and calls for deeper investigation.
IV. Implementation Path for High-Quality, Large-Scale Development of New Energy Storage Technologies
The Plan, centered on the development of a new‑type power system, coordinates efforts across the supply side, the grid side, the user side, and the regulation end, refines the implementation of key tasks, and establishes clear safeguard mechanisms. From the perspective of advanced energy storage, these task arrangements highlight the following priority areas.
(1) Fully leverage the regulatory role of new‑type energy storage. The Plan seeks to strengthen the power system’s regulation capacity and ensure the efficient dispatch of various flexibility resources. With regard to enhancing the regulation capabilities of new‑type energy storage, the following measures are proposed: first, promote technological upgrades for eligible existing projects to continuously improve their dispatchability; second, set region‑specific targets for renewable energy utilization rates and scientifically determine the scale of on‑site energy storage deployment; third, in transmission‑oriented renewable energy bases located in desert, gobi, and barren areas, rationally plan the capacity of new‑type energy storage to significantly increase the share of renewable energy in transmitted power. By fostering coordinated interactions between renewable energy and new‑type energy storage, the transition from policy‑driven to market‑led co‑located storage deployment will be advanced, thereby effectively enhancing the grid‑friendliness and integration capacity of renewable energy facilities.
(II) Optimizing the Layout of Grid‑Side Independent Energy Storage for Supply Assurance. The Plan places great emphasis on energy security, establishing a power supply‑guarantee system that integrates new energy, energy storage, peaking gas‑fired power, and clean, high‑efficiency coal‑fired power. It seeks to strengthen the resilience of the power system and continuously improve the quality of electricity supply. The Plan calls for accelerating the deployment of a number of grid‑side independent advanced energy‑storage stations capable of supporting peak‑load operations, with an additional national capacity of approximately 80 million kilowatts during the 15th Five‑Year Plan period. The target is to achieve an equivalent peak‑shaving duration of four hours, while specifying guidance on scale at the regional level. The Plan also promotes the expanded application of grid‑forming technologies and explores diversified black‑start schemes such as “thermal power + energy storage.”
(3) Promote the development of new‑type energy storage tailored to local conditions to build a next‑generation power grid. The Plan focuses on constructing a secure and reliable, green and low‑carbon, robust and resilient, as well as smart and flexible power grid, thereby facilitating coordinated operation among transmission, distribution, and microgrids to fully leverage their roles as resource‑allocation platforms and service providers. With regard to building a robust and resilient distribution network, the plan calls for optimizing the deployment of a number of medium‑ and low‑voltage distribution networks and new‑type energy‑storage projects at the substation level, enhancing the overall carrying capacity and regulation capability of the distribution system. In terms of developing smart microgrids across multiple application scenarios, the plan envisages the implementation of several source‑network‑load‑storage‑coordinated smart microgrid projects, thereby increasing the share of self‑consumption of locally generated renewable energy.
(4) Actively expand new business forms and models for emerging energy storage applications. The Plan promotes the integrated development of the power sector with related fields. With regard to fostering synergistic development between power and computing capabilities, it leverages computing infrastructure to advance new models such as source‑grid‑load‑storage integration, thereby increasing the share of green electricity in computing facilities. In terms of promoting coordinated interactions among electricity, heat, and hydrogen, it encourages the deployment of combined heat and power (CHP) units that achieve thermal‑electrical decoupling through molten‑salt thermal storage, hot‑water thermal storage, and other methods, while exploring advanced high‑temperature thermal storage technologies such as phase-change thermal storage and solid‑state thermal storage, and expanding application scenarios for hydrogen storage and hydrogen‑based power generation. As for advancing the integration of power and transportation, the Plan calls for optimizing the siting of a number of wind‑solar‑storage‑charging‑battery‑swap stations along transport corridors; establishing independent microgrids in port and terminal areas that operate in coordinated wind‑solar‑storage configurations; and creating demonstration projects for integrated source‑grid‑load‑storage‑transport energy convergence at transportation hubs and other key locations.
(5) Fully promote the participation of new‑type energy storage in the electricity market. The Plan specifies deepening reforms of the electricity market’s institutional mechanisms, improving systems that enable new‑type entities—including new‑type energy storage—to participate in the electricity market, and encouraging all types of market participants on both the generation and consumption sides to submit quantity and price bids for full participation in the spot market. It also calls for refining the ancillary services market framework, covering frequency regulation, reserve capacity, and other products; continuously enhancing capacity‑based pricing mechanisms for flexible resources such as new‑type energy storage; establishing a reliable capacity‑compensation mechanism; and ensuring compensation for the system’s reliable capacity. By adhering to the market‑oriented principle of “who provides, who profits; who benefits, who bears,” the Plan seeks to improve cost‑sharing and benefit‑equity mechanisms, thereby sustaining the investment and development momentum of flexible, adjustable resources like new‑type energy storage.
During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, the power system will face increasingly stringent demands for enhanced regulation capacity and peak‑load supply assurance. As a key enabler of system flexibility, the scientific planning and high‑quality development of new‑type energy storage are of paramount importance. Looking ahead to the 15th Five-Year Plan, this Plan will coordinate and optimize the deployment of various regulation resources, deepen synergies among new‑type energy storage and all links in the generation‑grid‑load‑storage chain, refine market mechanisms and price signals, and steer the diversified, systematic, and market‑oriented development of energy storage, thereby providing robust support for building a new‑type power system and achieving the carbon‑peak target.
