H1 2026 Energy Storage Battery Cell Shipments Reach 486 GWh; Large-Capacity and Effective Delivery Become Market Main Themes
I. H1 Energy Storage Battery Cell Shipments Reach 486 GWh, Market Maintains Strong Momentum
In H1 2026, the global energy storage battery cell market continued its rapid growth. SMM data shows that from January to June, cumulative shipments reached 486 GWh; Q1 and Q2 shipments were 223 GWh and 263 GWh, respectively, with Q2 up approximately 17.9% QoQ. Looking at the monthly trend, shipments in China rose from 71 GWh in January to 86 GWh in June, with the monthly shipment trend steadily shifting upward.
In terms of application mix, power generation and grid-side and commercial & industrial (C&I) storage remained the main shipment destinations for energy storage battery cells, accounting for 87.5% of total H1 shipments, while residential ESS battery cell shipments accounted for approximately 12.5%.
Overall, in H1 2026, demand for energy storage battery cells was still mainly driven by power generation and grid-side and C&I storage, with residential ESS serving as an important supplement. The concentration of application towards utility-scale energy storage not only boosted cell shipment volumes, but also pushed the industry to accelerate the shift towards products with larger capacity, higher energy density, and lower lifecycle costs.
Alongside the rapid expansion of market size, the competitive landscape among energy storage battery cell enterprises became clearer. According to SMM's survey of shipments by energy storage battery cell companies, top-tier players captured the majority of market share by leveraging their client base, manufacturing scale, and stable delivery capabilities, while some enterprises achieved ranking improvements through the release of new production lines, product ramp-ups, and customer expansion.
In the overall H1 2026 energy storage battery cell shipment ranking, CATL, Hithium, and EVE took the top three spots, with CALB ranking fourth. CORNEX New Energy moved up significantly to fifth place, and Great Power Energy rose to eighth, making these two notable performers in the overall list. Overall, the top-tier group remained stable, while some mid-tier enterprises saw faster growth in shipment scale and market positioning.
Since power generation and grid-side and C&I storage contributed over 80% of energy storage battery cell shipments, the competitive dynamics in this segment strongly influenced the overall ranking. Orders in this segment are large in volume, and demand high requirements for cell consistency, cycling performance, system integration, and mass supply capability, making it the most fiercely contested market for energy storage battery cell enterprises.
In the power generation, grid-side, and C&I storage market, CATL, Hithium, and EVE were the top three, while CALB and BYD ranked fourth and fifth, respectively. CORNEX New Energy rose to sixth and Sunwoda to eighth, reflecting the two companies' further expansion in shipment scale and customer coverage in the utility-scale and C&I storage segments. Competitive advantages in this market are mainly built on the ability to secure large-scale orders, product reliability, system integration, and sustained delivery.
Compared with power generation, grid-side, and C&I storage, the residential ESS market has a more fragmented customer structure, with regional differences in product specifications, certification systems, and channel service requirements. Competitiveness in this segment depends more on product adaptation, overseas customer coverage, and rapid response capabilities.
In the residential ESS market, REPT Battero, Great Power Energy, and EVE took the top three spots. REPT Battero ranked first, while Great Power Energy moved up to second, with strong residential ESS cell shipment performance. CORNEX New Energy, Ampace, SVOLT Energy Technology, Rongjie Energy, Ganfeng LiEnergy, Pylontech, and Highstar entered the top ten, reflecting diversified market participants.
Taken together, the three rankings show that the current energy storage battery cell market is characterized by "leading enterprises maintaining their lead, some enterprises improving their rankings, and advantages diverging by application segment." As the market shifts from scale expansion to competition based on product and delivery capabilities, customer acquisition, product mix, manufacturing stability, and cross-scenario deployment will become key factors influencing enterprises' market positions.
II. Shipments of Large Battery Cells Above 500Ah Reach Approximately 42 GWh, Large-Capacity Products Enter Large-Scale Delivery Phase
In addition to shipment volume growth, product capacity upgrading became one of the most prominent structural changes in the energy storage battery cell market in H1 2026. According to SMM data, shipments of large-capacity energy storage battery cells above 500Ah reached approximately 42 GWh in H1, accounting for 8.6% of total shipments. As these products gradually completed customer onboarding, large cells above 500Ah have shifted from the earlier product launch and validation stage to the large-scale delivery phase.
The 42 GWh shipment volume indicates that large-capacity cells have already built an initial industrialization foundation, but the current market penetration rate is still below 10%, meaning they have not yet displaced the mainstream position of 314Ah cells. In the near term, the market will maintain a parallel structure of "large-scale delivery of 314Ah products, with 500Ah+ products accelerating their penetration."
From the system side, the value of large cells above 500Ah goes beyond the increase in individual cell capacity. With higher individual capacity, the number of cells, connectors, and management units required for the same system capacity decreases, simplifying pack and system structures and helping to reduce integration costs such as components, assembly, and later operation and maintenance. At the same time, next-generation large-capacity cells often optimize material systems, structural design, and thermal management solutions simultaneously to improve cycle life and available energy over the lifecycle; the reduction in inactive components within the system also boosts volumetric efficiency and overall energy density. With joint improvements in integration costs, cycle life, and energy density, large-capacity cells can further reduce the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and provide product support for longer-duration energy storage systems in the future.
However, larger individual cell capacity does not directly equate to better overall performance. Whether large cells above 500Ah can continue to expand shipments still depends on product consistency, cycling performance, safety, thermal management compatibility, and manufacturing stability at scale. In the future, the focus of market competition will gradually shift from capacity specifications to product reliability and full lifecycle economics.
III. Expansion of 500Ah+ Cell Capacity Faces Multiple Constraints; Effective Supply Depends on Order and Manufacturing Coordination
In H1 2026, many battery cell enterprises accelerated their deployment of large-capacity products above 500Ah, but some production lines encountered issues with process stability, manufacturing yield, and quality control during construction, commissioning, and ramping, resulting in actual expansion pace falling short of expectations. This shows that large cell production lines cannot immediately form stable delivery capabilities after construction is completed; a considerable period of process fine-tuning and customer validation is still required from equipment installation to mass shipment.
Order support is also a critical factor affecting the ramp-up of large cell production lines. Some enterprises have relatively limited orders on hand for 500Ah+ products, resulting in a lack of continuous and stable production tasks that are unfavorable for process parameter optimization, yield improvement, and quality data accumulation. If the order scale does not match the pace of the production line, even if enterprises have completed capacity deployment, it will be difficult to quickly form stable effective supply.
At the same time, large-capacity products require deeper collaboration between cell enterprises and downstream system integrators. Cell dimensions, thermal management methods, structural design, control strategies, and system capacity all need to be re-adapted, leading to relatively long cycles for customer validation and order import. Therefore, whether large cells above 500Ah can achieve large-scale delivery depends not only on the speed of production line construction, but also on manufacturing yield, quality control, order certainty, and collaboration with downstream customers in joint development and delivery coordination.
From this perspective, the competitive focus of the energy storage battery cell industry is shifting from planned capacity scale to effective supply capability. Order acquisition, production line maturity, manufacturing yield, product performance, cost control, and customer collaboration will collectively determine whether enterprises can steadily convert large-cell capacity into actual shipments.
IV. H2 Energy Storage Battery Cell Market Expected to Maintain High Growth; Tax Policies May Pull Forward Demand and Delivery Schedules
Looking ahead to H2 2026, supported by the sustained release of energy storage demand both in China and overseas, global energy storage battery cell shipments are expected to continue growing rapidly, with power generation and grid-side and C&I storage remaining the main sources of demand. As more 500Ah+ large cells complete customer validation and enter mass delivery, the shipment volume and market penetration of large-capacity products are expected to increase further, making product structure upgrades a key theme for the H2 market.
Meanwhile, tax policy adjustments could have a significant impact on the timing of shipments. Starting from September 1, 2026, lithium-ion batteries will be subject to a 2% consumption tax; the VAT export rebate rate for battery products was already reduced to 6% in April and will be eliminated from January 1, 2027. Given the expectation of higher tax burdens and export costs, some cell enterprises and their customers may pull forward order confirmations, cargo pick-ups, customs declarations, and export delivery arrangements, thereby providing some support for shipments in Q3 and the early part of Q4.
Overall, the H2 2026 energy storage battery cell market is expected to maintain high growth, but the market rhythm may be affected by both tax policy adjustments and product structure upgrades. Industry competition will further shift from pure scale expansion to a comprehensive contest involving product reliability, manufacturing stability, customer collaboration, and sustained delivery capabilities. Whether enterprises can seize the policy window, steadily deliver existing orders, and promote continuous shipments of 500Ah+ large cells will be key variables influencing H2 performance and market positioning.
SMM New Energy Industry Research Department
Wang Cong 021-51666838
Ma Rui 021-51595780
Feng Disheng 021-51666714
Lv Yanlin 021-20707875
Zhang Haohan 021-51666752
Wang Zihan 021-51666914
Wang Jie 021-51595902
Xu Yang 021-51666760
Chen Bolin 021-51666836
Yang Le 021-51595898
Li Yisha 021-51666730
Huang Chencong 021-51595860
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