Reports indicate that CATL (03750) has completed price adjustments for its storage cells on its online marketplace, with the ultra-large 587Ah storage cell being listed publicly for the first time, offering a new pricing benchmark for the mid-to-small storage market. According to the latest listings on the marketplace, the starting display prices for three main storage cells are: 280Ah (1P) at 0.470 yuan/Wh, 314Ah at 0.403 yuan/Wh, and 587Ah at 0.415 yuan/Wh.

Compared to the previous listings from early September, the minimum price for the 280Ah (1P) cell has increased by 1.1%, while the 314Ah cell has risen by 2.0%. In response, a representative from CATL stated that this adjustment is routine and that the company regularly adjusts prices based on market conditions.

Notably, this price hike by CATL is not an isolated event. On August 1, CATL had already raised the price of its 314Ah storage cell on its official marketplace from 0.414 yuan/Wh to 0.423 yuan/Wh, a single increase of approximately 2.17%. By August 2026, the average price of mainstream domestic 314Ah LFP storage cells had rebounded to around 0.365 yuan/Wh, representing a gain of over 20% compared to the end of 2025. EVE Energy also announced a 2% price increase across all cell categories starting September 1 to pass on consumption tax costs.

Industry analysts suggest that this round of storage cell price increases results from multiple converging factors. Three government departments jointly issued a notice imposing a 2% consumption tax on lithium-ion batteries starting September 1, 2026, ending over a decade of tax exemptions for the industry. Additionally, upstream raw material prices, such as lithium carbonate, continue to climb. Moreover, storage demand is emerging as the core growth driver, replacing power batteries, with AI data center storage needs releasing rapidly. Leading manufacturers have full order books, and capacity utilization remains high, pushing cell prices into an upward trajectory.

The global storage cell market continued its explosive growth from 2025 through the first half of 2026. According to SNE Research data, global storage battery shipments in 2025 reached approximately 651.5 GWh, up about 76% year-over-year. In the first half of 2026, global storage battery shipments hit 461.3 GWh, a 71% increase year-over-year, with some institutions reporting over 460 GWh for the same period, translating to a year-over-year surge of approximately 94%. Multiple institutions forecast that global storage cell shipments will exceed 900 GWh in 2026, with some estimates revised upward to over 1,000 GWh.

From a regional perspective, China remains the world's largest producer of storage cells, accounting for over 94% of global shipments in 2025. However, in the first half of 2026, overseas markets surpassed China for the first time, representing approximately 53% to 56% of the total, with significant growth in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Australia.

CITIC Securities believes that as AIDC evolves toward hundred-megawatt and gigawatt scales, with continuous increases in single-cabinet power, traditional data center power supply and cooling systems are being rapidly restructured. Energy storage is shifting from conventional backup power to load smoothing, grid-friendly operations, and energy regulation, while liquid cooling is upgrading from basic cooling equipment to intelligent thermal management systems. Storage and liquid cooling are expected to become key incremental components of AIDC infrastructure.

JPMorgan released a research report stating that since June, Chinese energy storage value chain stocks on the A-share market have experienced significant pullbacks, with CATL, Hyperstrong, Deye Technology, and Sungrow Power suffering declines far exceeding broader market performance. This reflects investor concerns about weak domestic storage demand next year and rising geopolitical uncertainty. The bank views the market as overly pessimistic and maintains a positive outlook on storage demand through 2030, forecasting a compound annual growth rate of approximately 22% for China's storage installations through that period. It also expects battery shipments to grow by roughly 20% year-over-year in 2027, compared with market expectations of nearly zero growth.

Among the stocks covered, the bank continues to list CATL, Sungrow Power, and Deye Technology as top picks, viewing CATL as the best choice to capture global storage growth due to its leading market share, strong overseas exposure, and attractive valuation after the recent pullback, with a target price of HKD 725.

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CATL (03750): CATL focuses on the research, development, production, and sale of power batteries and energy storage battery systems. In the first half of 2026, CATL's power battery business generated revenue of RMB 192.125 billion, up 46.02% year-over-year. Its storage battery business revenue reached RMB 53.261 billion, up 87.54% year-over-year. Net profit stood at RMB 43.284 billion, a 41.98% increase year-over-year.

CALB (03931): In the first half of this year, CALB achieved revenue of RMB 27.084 billion, up 65% year-over-year, with net profit attributable to shareholders of RMB 935 million, a substantial 100.7% increase year-over-year. By segment, power battery revenue rose 54.8% to RMB 16.506 billion, while storage and other business revenue surged 83.8% year-over-year, far outpacing the power battery segment and accounting for nearly 40% of total revenue.

Ganfeng Lithium (01772): At its interim results briefing on August 31, Ganfeng Lithium stated that it continues to advance capacity expansion and product iteration for storage batteries. New storage battery capacity of 10 GWh per year has been added in Nanchang, and the trial production of its self-developed 588Ah large-format cell line at Nanchang Ganfeng Lithium has begun, with plans to officially start capacity ramp-up in the third quarter of 2026. The 648Ah large-format cell line is also being accelerated.

Rept Battero (00666): The company's interim report revealed revenue of RMB 14.92 billion, up 57.2% year-over-year, with net profit attributable to shareholders of RMB 704 million, both exceeding market expectations. In a research note, BOCOM International noted that on the storage product front, the company is advancing its 392Ah and 588Ah large-capacity storage cells as well as its 6.26MWh Powtrix storage system, strengthening its position in large-capacity, long-duration storage. On the overseas front, the company has entered the supply chains of mainstream local automakers abroad and achieved batch deliveries. Additionally, the first phase of its 8 GWh power and storage battery production facility in Indonesia is underway, which is expected to further enhance its local supply capabilities overseas.