CATL Launches TENER Sodium: First Field-Proven Sodium-Ion Storage System

By HY-Betty June 24th, 2026 1359 views

MUNICH, Germany – June 22, 2026 – Chinese battery maker CATL officially launched the TENER Sodium Energy Storage System in Munich, calling it the first sodium-ion battery storage solution to undergo real-world testing. The company said its technology, production capacity, and supply chain have all reached commercial readiness. CATL expects cumulative shipments of 1 GWh by the end of 2026, with international deliveries starting in June 2027.
"We are committed to advancing energy independence globally and delivering long-term value," said William Wu, Director of CATL's Energy Storage Technology Center. "Our mission has been to create a battery chemistry from abundant resources available on every continent, capable of meeting the energy needs of eight billion people, with longer cycle life and higher safety." Wu emphasized that sodium and lithium will together form the twin pillars of future energy storage.

TENER Sodium: Certainty for an Uncertain Future

As renewable energy grows and AI-driven electricity demand accelerates, energy storage is moving from a backup option to essential grid infrastructure. Traditional systems have relied heavily on lithium, which comes with concentrated supply chains and price volatility. Sodium, on the other hand, is over 1,000 times more abundant than lithium, widely available, and offers advantages in extreme-temperature performance, safety, and cost. This makes a shift toward sodium-ion chemistry in storage nearly inevitable.
Amanda Xu, CTO ESS and President of ESS Europe at CATL, said in her keynote: "The energy storage industry has moved beyond pure scale competition. Success now depends on creating long-term value. Our guiding principle is that readiness creates certainty." She noted this is the mission behind TENER Sodium.
Powered by CATL's latest sodium-ion technology, the TENER Sodium system delivers more than 30 MWh of rated capacity through a fully modular design. The system offers three customer benefits:
• Simplified deployment: each module weighs about 42 tonnes, and a 1 GWh site needs only 34 units.
• Enhanced flexibility: separate energy and power blocks support storage durations of 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 hours, adapting to project needs.
• Lower maintenance cost: faulty modules can be quickly isolated and swapped, improving system availability, reducing operating expenses, and maximizing asset use.

Voltage Regulation

To handle the wide voltage range of sodium-ion cells, a dedicated bidirectional DC voltage regulation system automatically boosts voltage in the low range, allowing the power conversion system to maintain optimal output. This improves round-trip efficiency by nearly 2%, translating to millions of additional kilowatt-hours per year for a 1 GWh plant. The system works with mainstream PCS products and strengthens grid support.

Battery Management System

A custom BMS uses sodium's sloping voltage curve for more accurate state-of-charge estimation. Sodium-ion cells also tolerate 20% higher overcharge SOC than lithium-ion cells, giving the BMS an extra 20% safety buffer and operational flexibility.

Ultra-Low Auxiliary Consumption

A top-discharge airflow design eliminates thermal-island effects and cuts heat generation by nearly 30%. Paired with a high-efficiency liquid cooling system, auxiliary power drops from the industry-standard 2% to just 1%, potentially saving millions of euros in operating costs for large, long-duration projects.

Low Noise

At only 65 decibels, 10 dB quieter than conventional systems, TENER Sodium reduces community concerns and allows siting closer to load centers, cutting transmission and distribution costs. The system shares the same footprint and enclosure design as LFP systems, letting operators switch between sodium-ion and LFP batteries without redesigning projects or re-certifying. An upgrade path to 2000V high-voltage architectures is also included.

A Decade in the Making: Supply Chain and Manufacturing Now Commercial-Grade

The safety, return, and reliability advantages of TENER Sodium come from years of research and development. CATL began work on sodium-ion batteries in 2016, investing nearly €1.2 billion over ten years. More than 300 R&D staff have contributed, generating over 1,600 patent families and more than 200 granted global patents. The team overcame over 100 technical hurdles and built a complete materials-to-cells manufacturing chain.
What started in the lab has grown into a scalable material system for energy storage. CATL now has the capacity to produce tens of thousands of tonnes of anode and cathode materials, and production costs for NFPP cathode materials are expected to drop further. The company is working with system integrators to create a full closed-loop ecosystem covering cell R&D, system delivery, testing, and commercial rollout.
On the manufacturing side, CATL has invested RMB 5 billion to expand sodium-ion lines at its Fuding base, adding 40 GWh of annual capacity. The Jining base in Shandong has planned 160 GWh of sodium-ion capacity. Mass-production lines are fully commissioned and operating, ready to support large-scale deployment.
With technology, product, supply chain, and manufacturing all reaching maturity, commercialization is speeding up. In China, the first sodium-ion energy storage systems will be delivered to customers this September. Cumulative shipments are expected to hit 1 GWh by the end of 2026. International deliveries will follow in June 2027.
In April 2026, CATL and HyperStrong signed a three-year, 60 GWh sodium-ion storage deal. It is the world's largest commercial sodium-ion contract and marks the sector's entry into the gigawatt-hour era.

Next-Generation Energy Storage: Building Certainty for the Future Grid

From pioneering LFP as a mainstream storage chemistry, to standardizing dedicated energy storage cells at 280 Ah and 314 Ah and the second-generation 587 Ah cell, and now launching a field-validated sodium-ion system, each of CATL's technology transitions has pushed the industry forward.
The TENER Sodium launch signals a new phase where lithium and sodium together form the backbone of next-generation energy storage, supporting the energy transition for decades. As the system begins global delivery, CATL and its partners are turning strategic vision into a more stable, cost-effective, and sustainable energy future.

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