Text | New energy industrialist
The module giant's energy storage ambition: to become an industry leader
JinkoSolar and Trina Solar, the two major module giants, are gaining momentum in the field of energy storage.
Recently, during the ESIE2024 exhibition co-sponsored by the Zhongguancun Energy Storage Industry Technology Alliance, JinkoSolar and Trina Energy Storage made high-profile appearances and disclosed the latest progress and goals of the energy storage business.
JinkoSolar released the industry's mainstream 5MWh large-scale energy storage liquid cooling system, the Blue Whale SunTera G2, and its self-developed 314 battery cells, and introduced its self-development in the fields of EMS, PCS, BMS, etc.
JinkoSolar's 314 cell press conference
At the scene, Wu Dianfeng, head of JinkoSolar's energy storage product center, revealed:
The SunTera G2 energy storage system will be ready for mass production by the end of May.
Starting from the third quarter of 2024, the first phase of 5GWh energy storage cell product production capacity of 314 cells will be officially put into operation and have the conditions for mass production and shipment;
This year, JinkoSolar will also launch its self-developed PCS.
Duan Huzi, head of JinkoSolar's energy storage business, said that the company shipped 1GWh last year, and this year it aims to achieve several times growth. In specific market segments, Jinko has always been optimistic about the industrial and commercial energy storage track, and has a great focus on the recent layout. "After the launch of the 5MWh system, large storage will be regarded as important as it is. ”
Jinko expects the energy storage business to achieve the same leading position as modules.
Not long ago, during the 2024 annual meeting of the China Development Forum, Qian Jing, global vice president of JinkoSolar, said in an interview: "Energy storage is the company's second business pillar and a sector with great potential for future development, striving to become the world's top three energy storage suppliers in 3 to 5 years." ”
Trina Solar has the same ambitions. The company's vision has been upgraded to "committed to becoming a global leader in photovoltaic energy storage smart energy solutions", compared to a single photovoltaic before.
In terms of specific scale, Sun Wei, President of Trina Energy Storage, revealed: "Chairman Gao Jifan emphasized that Trina Energy Storage must be a leader in the industry and achieve the same ideal in the field of photovoltaic modules. In the next 5-8 years, Trina's energy storage sales revenue will exceed 100 billion yuan, which is almost as large as the scale of photovoltaics. ”
According to the performance report, in 2023, Trina Solar's revenue will be 113.51 billion yuan.
At the exhibition, Trina Energy also officially announced the Elementa 2 battery compartment equipped with self-developed 314 battery cells. At the same time, it also released the industry's first "White Paper on Energy Storage Special Cells" to demonstrate its strength in self-produced and self-developed battery cells.
In terms of the company's future market direction, Sun Wei said that it is still focusing on the large storage market, which has a significant scale effect and can reduce costs.
However, he also stressed that the household savings market will not be ignored, and it is of great significance for household savings to increase profits, establish the company's reputation, and increase the experience of various subdivisions.
The leading position of the module market has laid the foundation for the two giants. According to statistics from PV infolink, a well-known consulting agency, in 2023, JinkoSolar ranked first, while Trina and LONGi tied for second.
Ranking of PV module shipments
By taking the lead in laying out the TOPcon route, JinkoSolar will ship nearly 80GW in 2023, returning to the world's No. 1 position after a lapse of three years.
Trina Solar is regarded as an evergreen in the industry, and although its shipment ranking has fluctuated, it is basically within the top three in the world. Module shipments in 2023 will reach 70GW.
The mature photovoltaic business has created obvious advantages for the expansion of the energy storage business: first, the investment and development of photovoltaic power plants are highly overlapping with energy storage, and second, the channel network covering the world. Trina's overseas revenue accounted for 50%, Jinko's 60%, and the two giants have established a certain brand awareness.
The advantages of the sales side are outstanding, and the two giants need to make up for the homework on the R&D and production ends.
It is more difficult to do energy storage than photovoltaic modules. Photovoltaic modules fall under the realm of physics, while energy storage encompasses electrochemistry, power electronics, and grid technology.
However, the two giants have chosen full-stack self-development and vertical integration layout, involving major components such as battery cells, PCS, and EMS.
In this regard, an insider of Trina Energy Storage said that in the future, the market expects that major enterprises will be more in-depth in the layout of energy storage, and enterprises will extend to the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain, which will inevitably challenge the depth and sustainability of cooperation.
Looking at another energy storage force from the photovoltaic field, inverter companies such as Sungrow, Kehua Digital Energy, Sineng Electric, etc., are not currently involved in the production of battery cells.
Some industry observers told the new energy industry that inverters are relatively asset-light operations, while modules are asset-heavy. Having been deeply involved in the module field for many years and carrying multiple cycles, Jinko and Trina are familiar with the operation of heavy assets, which gives them the confidence to do a good job in battery cells.
How far from the target
At present, Trina and Jinko's production capacity planning has also been basically completed.
Trina Energy Storage has established Jiangsu Jintan battery cell base and Anhui Chuzhou base.
Jiangsu Jintan battery cell base was established in 2019 and is jointly funded by Trina Energy Storage and Penghui Group. It is planned to have a 10GWh lithium iron phosphate cell production capacity and a 10GWh energy storage module production line.
In 2021, Trina Energy Storage will aim at the large storage track. In 2022, Trina Energy Storage established the strategic positioning of "Trina Core" and completed the sample development of energy storage cells such as 150Ah and 280Ah.
The Chuzhou base in Anhui Province plans to produce an annual output of 5GWh energy storage container system integration line and supporting 3S production capacity, and is the largest energy storage manufacturing base in the Yangtze River Delta region.
According to official information, by the end of 2023, Trina's energy storage product production capacity will reach about 12GWh, and by the end of the second quarter of 2024, it will reach 25GWh capacity.
Trina Energy Storage 5MWh Energy Storage System Elementa 2 Source: Official account
In terms of shipment scale, official information shows that Trina Energy Storage has accumulated more than 100 global customers, delivered a total of 4GWh projects, and has a global project reserve of more than 10GWh.
Jinko's energy storage business started late, and the energy storage company was only officially established in 2022. And it is the first to focus on the field of industrial and commercial energy storage.
On July 4, 2023, JinkoSolar's 12GWh energy storage system and 12GWh energy storage battery construction project landed in Haining, Zhejiang. The site was recently put into operation.
In terms of business scale, an announcement issued by JinkoSolar in 2023 shows that in the first three quarters, JinkoSolar's operating income was 125 million yuan and the net loss was 20.22 million yuan.
Image source: JinkoSolar's earnings report
There is also a major engine for the development of Jinko's energy storage business, that is, the sister company Jinko Power.
Jinko Power has three major sectors: power station development, power plant services, and energy services, focusing on investment and development. Jinko's investment in energy storage power stations will drive Jinko's energy storage shipments to increase.
According to the 2023 financial report, Jinko Power has filed and connected a total of 3.9GWh energy storage projects to the grid.
The product and production capacity have been landed, and the next step is to hand it over to the market. To achieve the goal of becoming a leader in the industry, Jinko Energy Storage and Trina Energy Storage are facing severe challenges.
The players of energy storage are several times that of the photovoltaic module industry, bringing together a variety of manufacturers including battery cell companies, inverter companies, wind power companies and professional integrators, as well as a large number of enterprises across the border.
At present, the industry has grown a large number of world-class giants, such as CATL, BYD, Tesla, Sungrow, CRRC, Fluence, China Innovation Airlines, Guoxuan Hi-Tech, Wärtsilä, RelyEZ, EVE, Sunwoda, etc.
Regarding the world's top three goals, Duan Huzi said that this goal is calculated based on the growth rate from 2021 to 2023 and the future global installed capacity.
Although it is a rising star, Jinko is still full of confidence. Wu Dianfeng revealed that Chairman Li Xiande said that the industry should not be highly turbulent in the past two years, but also do not underestimate the trend of this industry in the past ten years.
He said that energy storage is a big mountain, and we are still just starting at the foot of the mountain, just climbing a little bit.
Gao Jifan is similarly optimistic. He said in April last year that new energy storage was still in the first stage of exploration.
Founded in 1997 and Jinko in 2006, the PV industry has experienced rounds of reshuffle and cycles, and responding to market competition and anti-cyclical is also the most important ability of these companies.
How Trina and Jinko rewrite the industry pattern, time will tell.