Overseas expansion adds fuel to Chinese energy storage firms’ hunt for bosses

Openings at overseas energy storage operations flood John Yang’s screen anytime he browses recruitment websites, with listed giants and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) alike offering salaries well above those typically found in China’s manufacturing sector.

“Job seeking has never felt easier. The only worry is whether the new role could last beyond next year,” joked Yang, Thailand director at a Shenzhen-based energy storage firm.

Yang’s experience reflects the recent, rapid overseas expansion of Chinese energy storage companies as they seek to establish themselves as global leaders amid a flood of demand.

China Energy News, affiliated with the Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily, recently cited industry group China Energy Storage Alliance as saying that Chinese firms secured nearly 200 overseas orders totalling 186 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in the first half of this year. That represented a year-on-year surge of more than 220 per cent.

Over 57 per cent of the orders came from the Middle East, Australia and Europe, with the US market – constrained by tariffs and regulatory hurdles – contributing 5.34 GWh, just under 3 per cent.

While smaller manufacturers were still struggling amid oversupply, the sector was also rebounding at home thanks to policy support, China Energy News reported. A plan released by the National Energy Administration last month called for the creation of 180 gigawatts of new energy storage capacity – mostly lithium-ion systems – by 2027, with that effort expected to mobilise roughly 250 billion yuan (US$32 billion) in investment.

South China Morning Post