China Targets Large-Scale Solid-State Battery Production by 2030

China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, working alongside six other government bodies, has laid out a five-year roadmap for the battery sector running through 2030. The plan puts all-solid-state cells at the center of the country’s next technological push, aiming for their first meaningful industrial-scale rollout by the end of the decade. To get there, the roadmap identifies hurdles that still need solving, including ionic conductivity, cycle stability and overall cost. Progress on cell interfaces, longer service life and pressure-applied cell designs is also flagged as essential, while production capacity for high-performance solid electrolytes is to be expanded. The chemistry side points to pairing high-voltage, high-capacity cathodes with lithium-metal or even anode-free architectures, backed by equipment advances such as isostatic presses.

Solid-state technology is far from the only bet. China intends to keep building out its lithium-ion base while adding sodium-ion and redox flow batteries to the mix, and it wants ultra-fast-charging cells brought to market faster. Sodium-ion efforts will prioritize cost, safety and access to raw materials, with cold-resistant traction batteries and long-life storage cells among the targets. For durable lithium-ion products, the plan sets a benchmark of 15,000 charge and discharge cycles, and leading makers are expected to drive defect rates down to parts-per-billion levels.

Industrial consolidation rounds out the strategy. Beijing wants to encourage mergers and restructuring across the battery sector while speeding up development of domestic lithium, cobalt and other raw material deposits, tying technology policy directly to supply chain security. Recycling obligations are tightening too: manufacturers must set up take-back systems sized to match what they sell, and companies are encouraged to build recycling capacity in key export markets where conditions allow. A digital identity system for batteries in New Energy Vehicles is also planned, along with exploration of internationally compatible battery passports and mutual recognition of CO2 footprint data.

The roadmap lands as China reshapes its incentive structure. Since September, lithium-ion batteries have carried a two per cent consumption tax that will climb to four per cent from September 2027, while sodium-ion and solid-state cells stay exempt through the end of 2028. EV purchase incentives are narrowing as well, with only a 50 per cent tax reduction available from the start of 2026 and further benefits set to lapse in 2027. The shift matters beyond China’s borders: the EU is trying to kickstart its own cell factories through instruments like the Battery Booster, yet Asian manufacturers already dominated global cell output and controlled the vast majority of European capacity in 2025.