On August 28th, PetroChina JiChai Times (Shandong) New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. was officially unveiled, marking another strategic collaboration between Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) and state-owned enterprises in the energy storage sector.
The unveiling ceremony revealed that JiChai Times will develop industry-leading energy storage system solution supply chains. According to public records, PetroChina JiChai Times (Shandong) New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. was established on August 19th with a registered capital of 77 million yuan. Located in Changqing District, Jinan, Shandong Province, the company is a joint venture between China Petroleum Group JiChai Power Co., Ltd. and CATL, with shareholding ratios of 60% and 40% respectively.
JiChai Times is an energy storage equipment manufacturing enterprise and comprehensive service provider specializing in technology research and development, product incubation, and industrialization in the new energy storage sector. The company will focus on lithium-ion battery energy storage system production within China, covering battery cell integration, battery management systems (BMS), and complete equipment manufacturing.
Information from the unveiling ceremony indicates that JiChai Times plans to build an industry-leading energy storage system solution supply chain. This includes constructing a new 3GWh/year large-scale energy storage system prefabricated cabin assembly line in Jinan, Shandong, and establishing a subsidiary in Suzhou, Jiangsu, with supporting electrical cabinet production facilities and converter production equipment. The two major production bases will ultimately achieve "north-south coordination and technological complementarity."
According to industry statistics, CATL has established 19 joint venture companies with 18 state-owned enterprises, with half being early partnerships with automotive companies for power battery factories. Energy storage joint ventures have been concentrated in the past two years.
In 2018, when grid-side energy storage business began, CATL first partnered with State Grid Corporation to establish two joint ventures (one Xinjiang company has since been canceled). In recent years, as energy storage market demand has risen, CATL has intensified its energy storage business cooperation, establishing joint ventures with China Energy Engineering Corporation, China Electric Equipment Group, State Power Investment Corporation, China National Building Material Group, and Petrochina Company Limited. Currently, cooperation partners in the energy storage sector cover seven major state-owned enterprises.
Examining the specific content of these corporate partnerships, collaborations with China National Building Material Group and State Grid Corporation focus on energy storage power station projects. Partnerships with other enterprises involve equipment production and manufacturing, with CATL essentially helping five major state-owned enterprises transition into energy storage system research, development, and production, cultivating five new "energy storage system integrators."