[Storage: Anhui Normal University Li-Cl2 battery study published in Advanced Materials]

State Grid's project using grid-connected chained microgrids to enable continuous charging for electric heavy trucks over 1,000 km of expressway was selected among the first 136 national landmark application scenarios released by the NDRC. The project strings scattered roadside PV and storage into chained microgrids connected to the public grid, and plans a catenary-style charging system along the highway with a designed supply reliability of 99.99%. Once in place, on-board battery size could fall below 100 kWh and vehicle purchase costs could drop by 60-70%. A pilot scenario is planned on the 91.87 km Qian'an-Caofeidian Expressway, with 500 km of demonstration lines in the near term and over 2,000 km of electrified expressways targeted by 2035.

The Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission has adopted the tariffs discovered in GUVNL's Phase-IX standalone battery storage tender, awarding NLC India Renewables 275 MW/550 MWh at a monthly capacity rate of INR 231,989 per MW and Sun Drops Energia 175 MW/350 MWh at INR 231,990 per MW. The round followed the failure of a Phase-VII winner to sign a battery energy storage purchase agreement for the 900 MWh, prompting GUVNL to issue a fresh request for selection on 22 June 2026 after clearance from the Ministry of Power, with support from viability gap funding under the Power System Development Fund and an e-reverse auction on 11 August 2026 in which nine of 11 bidders took part. The commission directed GUVNL to execute the agreements within the stipulated timeframe, incorporate provisions under the late payment surcharge rules, submit copies of the executed agreements and publish the final tariff structures on its website. The projects will help Gujarat meet its energy storage and renewable purchase obligations and improve balancing, with the order clearing the way for implementation.

CATL has opened a commercial and technical office in Buenos Aires staffed for sales, engineering and project management, and is already supplying batteries to two Central Puerto projects totalling 205 MW and 1,025 MWh of storage capacity. The projects are Nuevo Puerto at 150 MW/750 MWh and Central Costanera at 55 MW/275 MWh, both using CATL lithium iron phosphate batteries with five-hour duration and both awarded under the AlmaGBA storage programme, with Nuevo Puerto holding a 15-year supply contract with distributor Edenor and Central Costanera serving Edesur. Nuevo Puerto is close to 80% complete, and Central Puerto plans to energise one project before the end of 2026 and the other in January 2027, with batteries installed but commissioning dependent on transformers from China delayed in transit. Argentina has awarded 713 MW under AlmaGBA and a further 700.5 MW across 20 projects under AlmaSADI at an estimated investment of US$700 million, while CATL says it has more than 15 GWh of awarded storage projects in Latin America and has shipped over 330 GWh of energy storage batteries globally to June 2026.