Under the dual drivers of policy and technology, the global data center energy storage market is experiencing rapid growth, presenting new opportunities for lithium battery companies.

The AI wave is fueling a new surge in global data center construction. The staggering electricity consumption and stringent power stability requirements of AI data centers pose significant challenges to existing power grids. In this context, deploying energy storage systems has become essential to ensure stable operations, mitigate power fluctuations, and enhance green energy utilization. Projections indicate that by 2030, the global data center energy storage market will grow exponentially, creating unprecedented opportunities for the lithium battery energy storage industry, with leading firms becoming focal points of market attention.

**Global Data Center Expansion Boosts Energy Storage Demand** The explosive growth of AI, cloud computing, and big data has spurred increased investment in AI data centers (AIDC). For instance, the combined capital expenditures of North America's four major cloud providers (Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Meta) and China's Alibaba and Tencent Holdings surged by 57% and 169% year-on-year in 2024, respectively.

Additionally, OpenAI, Oracle, and Japan's SoftBank plan to invest $500 billion over the next four years in AI infrastructure, including the "Stargate" project. Chinese tech giants are following suit, with Alibaba committing to invest more in cloud and AI infrastructure over the next three years than in the past decade, and ByteDance allocating RMB 160 billion to build its own data center clusters.

This expansion has led to soaring electricity demands. Large data centers can consume more power annually than mid-sized cities. According to an April report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), global data centers' share of electricity consumption has grown by 12% annually over the past five years. At this rate, data centers' power demand will more than double by 2030, reaching 945 TWh—slightly exceeding Japan's current annual electricity consumption.

Notably, AIDCs rely on massive GPU clusters, where sudden computational shifts cause severe power fluctuations, threatening grid stability and power quality. For data centers, even brief power interruptions can result in significant economic and social impacts.

Deploying energy storage systems on both the power supply and demand sides helps manage peak loads, stabilize fluctuations, and provide emergency backup, aligning with AIDCs' dynamic power needs while reducing reliance on grid expansion. Energy storage also facilitates the integration of wind and solar power.

At the October 2025 Open Compute Project (OCP) Global Summit, NVIDIA released an 800V DC architecture whitepaper, emphasizing the necessity of energy storage for next-generation AIDCs. Storage solutions—including electrolytic capacitors, supercapacitors, and batteries—enable charging during off-peak periods and discharging during peaks, smoothing power demand.

In February, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and seven other departments issued the *High-Quality Development Action Plan for New Energy Storage Manufacturing*, explicitly advocating energy storage deployment in data centers, providing policy support for sector growth.

Analysts predict the global and Chinese data center energy storage markets will reach 212 GWh and 98.8 GWh by 2030, respectively, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 49%.

**Lithium Battery Firms See Rising Energy Storage Revenue** Industry data shows global energy storage lithium battery shipments reached 340 GWh in 2024, up 51.1% year-on-year, with China accounting for 335 GWh (+62.62%). In the first three quarters of 2025, China's shipments hit 430 GWh (+99.07%), driven by utility-scale (365 GWh) and residential (33 GWh) storage. Full-year 2025 shipments are projected at 580 GWh (+75%).

Most lithium battery companies reported robust performance. Among 10 firms tracked, eight posted revenue growth, with Eve Energy, Penghui Energy, and Gotion High-Tech leading at 42.52%, 34.23%, and 32.17%, respectively. Net profit growth exceeded 500% for Corun New Energy and Gotion High-Tech.

Investors have taken notice: from April to November 2025, these stocks surged over 40%, with Penghui Energy, Shenzhen Highpower Technology, Gotion High-Tech, and CATL rising 115.56%, 113.85%, 97.87%, and 73.17%, respectively.

CATL (300750.SZ), the sector leader with a market cap of RMB 1.7 trillion, saw its energy storage revenue share jump from 0.08% in 2017 to 15.83% (RMB 57.29 billion) in 2024. It dominates the global market with a 36.5% share in 2024, serving clients like NextEra and State Power Investment Corp.

Eve Energy (300014.SZ), another major player (market cap: RMB 146.2 billion), increased its energy storage revenue share from 33.5% in 2023 to 39.14% in 2024. The firm pioneered mass production of 600Ah+ storage batteries and is exploring sodium-ion battery applications.

Gotion High-Tech (002074.SZ), with a market cap of RMB 68.7 billion, grew its energy storage revenue from RMB 3.5 billion in 2022 to RMB 7.8 billion in 2024. The company is expanding production to meet rising demand.

**Institutions Focus on Energy Storage Developments** Funds increased holdings in seven energy storage firms in Q3 2025, with Eve Energy, Sunwoda, Penghui Energy, and Gotion High-Tech seeing the largest upticks. Shenzhen Highpower Technology attracted social security fund investments, with its stake rising to 5.24%.

In Q4, Shenzhen Highpower (001283.SZ) received two rounds of surveys from 23 institutions, including CITIC Securities and CICC. The company highlighted breakthroughs in backup power units (BBUs) for data centers, leveraging its expertise in battery management systems (BMS).

Corun New Energy (600478.SH) and Sunwoda also drew institutional interest, with 35 and 30 surveys, respectively. Corun disclosed progress in solid-state battery development, targeting 1.6 GW/5.2 GWh of hybrid storage projects in Hebei Province.

*(Mentioned stocks are for illustrative purposes only; not investment advice.)*