New Perspectives on Energy Storage Financing: The Art of Risk Isolation and Diverse Financing Paths

Under the background of the continuous promotion of the "dual carbon" goals and the large-scale integration of new energy, the energy storage industry has stood at the forefront. However, the characteristics of large investment scale and long return cycles have also made financing issues a key factor restricting the implementation of energy storage projects.

With the development of the industry, the financing methods for energy storage projects have evolved from a single approach to a diversified one, expanding from traditional bank loans to innovative models such as financial leasing, industrial funds, and asset securitization.

Financing leasing has become an important method for financing energy storage projects, especially large-scale energy storage power stations.

In 2025, Guoyin Financial Leasing completed two large-scale financing leasing transactions for energy storage projects. In June, Guoyin Financial Leasing and Hebei Guomu New Energy launched a direct leasing project for energy storage power station equipment worth 844.8 million yuan, with a leasing period of 10 years.In September, Guoyin Jinzu made another move by entering into a financing lease arrangement with China Power Construction Group Hubei Engineering Co., Ltd. to purchase 500MW/3GWh energy storage power station equipment and facilities for 1.7 billion yuan, and signed a 10-year lease contract with Haibosi Chuang's wholly-owned subsidiary.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no source text provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like me to translate.

This type of "rent-to-own" model greatly alleviates the financial pressure of initial construction for energy storage projects, allowing investors to gradually cover costs through subsequent operational revenues, achieving a separation between light asset operations and heavy asset holdings.

The attention of industrial capital to the energy storage sector has significantly increased, especially for companies with advantages in long-duration energy storage technology.

In November 2025, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) Energy Storage, focusing on iron-chromium flow battery technology, announced the completion of over 100 million yuan in Pre-A++ round financing, led by Ant Group.The company has recently won the bid for the 50MW/300MWh independent new energy storage power station project in Huiyang District, leveraging its technological advantages of long cycle life and high safety, with a total investment of nearly 1 billion yuan.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like to have translated into English.

The capital market's favor for the energy storage sector reflects investors' optimism about the long-term development prospects of the energy storage industry. With the cancellation of the "mandatory energy storage policy" in 2025, the energy storage industry is transitioning from "mandatory energy storage" to "demand-based configuration." Owners are beginning to seriously consider technology route selection and project profitability models, which provides a favorable development environment for companies with technological advantages.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like me to translate.

All levels of government have introduced a series of supportive policies to provide diversified funding channels for energy storage projects.

For electrochemical energy storage projects with an actual investment of over 1 million yuan in Futian District, Shenzhen, a support of up to 0.5 yuan/kWh will be provided based on the actual discharge amount of the previous year. Each project has a support period of 3 years, with a maximum of 2 million yuan.I'm sorry, but it seems that the source text you provided is empty. Please provide the content you would like to have translated.

The Baiyun District of Guangzhou strongly supports new energy storage manufacturing projects. For projects with annual fixed asset investments of 50 million yuan or more, a subsidy of 2% of the investment amount will be provided, with a maximum of 20 million yuan available to the same enterprise.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like to have translated.

At the national level, the "Basic Rules for the Electricity Auxiliary Service Market" released in April 2025 clarifies the status of new business entities such as energy storage companies and virtual power plants, guiding their participation in regulation, improving the auxiliary service cost transmission mechanism, and creating policy conditions for energy storage projects to participate in the electricity market.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like to have translated.

The advancement of financial technology has also brought new possibilities for financing energy storage projects.

In November 2025, the Spanish company Turbo Energy announced the launch of a pilot project for the tokenization of renewable energy financing in collaboration with the Taurus and Stellar Development Foundation.The project will utilize blockchain technology to tokenize debt financing for solar and battery installations, with the goal of creating a scalable framework for financing commercial and industrial solar projects globally.I'm sorry, but there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like me to translate.

This blockchain-based tokenization model allows for fragmented on-chain financing, enabling more investors to participate in the financing of clean energy projects, representing one of the future development directions for financing energy storage and renewable energy projects.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like to have translated into English.

At the same time, asset-backed securities (ABS) are also an important direction for financing energy storage projects. By packaging the future stable electricity revenue rights and other income rights of energy storage power stations, and converting them into financial products that can circulate in the capital market, it can help project parties quickly recoup funds and achieve a positive investment cycle.

In the financing process of energy storage projects, risk isolation is a core issue of common concern for both investors and financing parties. By establishing special purpose vehicles (SPV) and other methods, project risks can be confined within specific entities, avoiding impacts on the parent company or other projects.

In practical operations, companies usually adopt a multi-layered structure to balance benefits and compliance. For example: China parent company → Cayman holding company (listing/financing platform) → BVI/Hong Kong SPV (intermediate holding) → project operating company. This design ensures that, under the premise of legal compliance, risk isolation, tax optimization, and financing convenience are maximized.

The risk isolation of energy storage projects is reflected not only in the legal structure but also in the choice of technical routes. Lithium iron phosphate batteries have an advantage in initial installation costs, but multiple cell replacements throughout the entire lifecycle will lead to a significant increase in operating costs.The flow battery's main equipment has a lifespan of 20-30 years, and there is no need to replace the main equipment. The annual operation and maintenance costs are very low, and as the energy storage duration increases, the cost advantage expands exponentially.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like to have translated into English.

In your opinion, which financial instrument among financing leasing, industrial funds, and asset securitization is most suitable for the current financing needs of energy storage projects in China?