Breaking the Energy Storage Bottleneck in the Carbon Market: A Glamorous Transformation from Green Electricity to Carbon Assets

Created on 11.20

When your company's energy storage system charges at night and discharges during the day, it not only saves on electricity costs but also quietly accumulates "carbon assets."

In 2025, China's carbon market will undergo significant changes. The national carbon market will expand to industries such as steel, cement, and aluminum smelting, covering 60% of the country's carbon emissions.At the same time, the National Certification and Accreditation Administration issued the special implementation rules for carbon footprint label certification of 17 products including energy storage lithium-ion batteries in September 2025.It has paved the way for energy storage to participate in the carbon market.

In Jingjiang, Jiangsu, a 120MW/240MWh grid-type energy storage project, through the collaboration of wind and solar power generation, is expected to reduce carbon emissions by 62,400 tons annually. These reductions are gradually being transformed into tangible carbon assets.

01 Policy Dividend: The Path to "Monetizing" Energy Storage Carbon Assets is Clear

With a series of policies being introduced intensively, the policy environment for energy storage participation in the carbon market is becoming increasingly完善.

In April 2025, the General Office of the CPC Central Committee and the General Office of the State Council clearly proposed in the "Opinions on Improving the Price Governance Mechanism" to "establish and improve the price mechanism for regulatory resources such as energy storage," confirming the market position of energy storage as a regulatory resource from the top-level design.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like me to translate.

More importantly, after the restart of the CCER (National Certified Voluntary Emission Reduction) market, the coverage of methodologies continues to expand. As of July 2025, data from the Beijing Green Exchange shows that the cumulative transaction volume of the national voluntary greenhouse gas emission reduction trading market has exceeded 200 million yuan, with the market size steadily climbing.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 same time, international rules such as the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) are also forcing China's energy storage industry to accelerate carbon asset management. After the new EU battery regulations come into effect, the carbon footprint verification requirements for exported batteries will be stricter, which means that the low-carbon attributes of energy storage products will directly relate to their competitiveness in the international market.I'm sorry, but it seems that the source text you provided is empty. Please provide the content you would like to have translated.

02 Conversion Path: How Does Energy Storage Create Carbon Assets?

Enhancing the Value of Green Electricity: From "Cheap Electricity" to "High-Quality Electricity"

The primary value of energy storage lies in converting unstable green electricity into high-quality power. In Suqian, Jiangsu, a 49.8 megawatt grid-side energy storage station has been built within a decommissioned substation, with an annual charge and discharge capacity exceeding 40 million kilowatt-hours, enhancing the local distributed photovoltaic consumption capacity by more than 20%.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like me to translate.

The green electricity that is effectively utilized can obtain green certificates (GEC). In the first half of 2025, the national green certificate trading volume reached 348 million, a year-on-year increase of 1.18 times, with an average price of 6.5 yuan per certificate in June, an increase of 4.4 times compared to the lowest price this year.Energy storage is the key support for enhancing the value of green electricity.

Creating Carbon Assets: From "Regulation Services" to "Emission Reduction Benefits"

Energy storage can directly create carbon assets in two ways:

The first is to provide "zero-carbon adjustment" services. Traditional grid adjustment relies on thermal power units, which generate additional carbon emissions. In contrast, energy storage offers zero-carbon adjustment; for every 1MWh of energy storage adjustment service, it can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 0.8-1.2 tons compared to thermal power adjustment.I'm sorry, but it seems that the source text you provided is empty. Please provide the text you would like me to translate.

The second is to reduce carbon emissions through the substitution effect of the power grid. Taking the integrated project of smart energy carbon source network load storage in Changzhi, Shanxi as an example, by building a unified energy big data foundation for the entire city, it promotes the local consumption of new energy and provides support for green electricity and green certificates for investment attraction.I'm sorry, but it seems that the source text you provided is empty. Please provide the content you would like me to translate.

03 Practical Case: Energy Storage Carbon Assets Take Root

Case 1: The Green Transformation of Jiangsu Jingjiang Special Steel

The 120MW/240MWh grid-type energy storage project of Jingjiang Special Steel operates in coordination with the on-site wind and solar power generation.I'm sorry, but there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like me to translate.

Project Effectiveness:

Annual provision of green electricity 75 million kilowatt-hours
Reduce carbon emissions by 62,400 tons
By participating in demand response, an additional annual income of over 5 million yuan is achieved.

The emission reduction of this project is applying for green certification and is expected to be directly traded in the carbon market in the future.

Case 2: Smart Carbon Management System in Changzhi, Shanxi

Changzhi City has created the country's first "city-level - district and county-level - enterprise-level" three-tier energy internet platform.The system achieves: unified energy big data foundation for centralized management of energy data across the city; integrated source-grid-load-storage to optimize regional energy allocation; innovative direct supply of green electricity to increase the local consumption ratio of green electricity.

This system not only enhances the capacity for renewable energy consumption but also creates considerable carbon assets.

Case 3: Carbon Reduction Practices of Huaneng Zhejiang Virtual Power Plant

Huaneng Zhejiang Virtual Power Plant promotes the consumption of new energy by aggregating distributed resources, saving 98,200 tons of raw coal, and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 1.87 million tons annually, equivalent to a 15% reduction in the abandonment rate of electricity.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like to have translated.

This case demonstrates the enormous potential of energy storage in carbon reduction through the form of virtual power plants.

04 Implementation Guide: Four Steps to Develop Energy Storage Carbon Assets

Step 1: Carbon Footprint Accounting and Certification

Enterprises need to conduct full lifecycle carbon footprint accounting for energy storage products in accordance with the "Special Implementation Rules for Carbon Footprint Labeling Certification of Energy Storage Lithium-ion Battery Products" and other standards.The key is to collect:

On-site data of the battery manufacturing process (pole piece manufacturing, stacking/winding, assembly, etc.)
Module assembly and battery pack assembly data
Energy, resource consumption, and waste disposal data

Step 2: Carbon Asset Development and Filing

Refer to the "Special Action Plan for the Large-Scale Construction of New Energy Storage (2025-2027)" issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Energy Administration, to develop energy storage carbon asset projects.The key point is:

Establish a monitoring and measurement system
Prepare carbon asset development materials
Choose the appropriate methodology
Submit to the competent authority for filing

Step 3: Carbon Market Trading and Monetization

Based on market demand, formulate carbon asset trading strategies. In the first half of 2025, the national green certificate average price is 5 yuan/piece, and the carbon market quota average price once reached 71.57 yuan/ton.Companies can choose trading varieties based on their own circumstances.

Step 4: International Recognition and Export Preparation

For export-oriented enterprises, it is necessary to pay attention to international requirements such as the new EU battery regulations, prepare product carbon footprint data and third-party certifications in advance, and ensure compliance with EU market access conditions.。

05 Future Outlook: Three Major Trends of Energy Storage Carbon Assets

Trend 1: Methodology continues to improve, and energy storage directly participates in the carbon market.

As the CCER market matures, specialized energy storage methodologies are expected to be introduced. Experts from the China Electric Power Research Institute point out that the assessment of carbon reduction in energy storage needs to establish a "baseline comparison" mechanism to distinguish the accounting differences between scenarios bundled with new energy and independent grid-connected scenarios.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like to have translated, and I'll be happy to assist you.

Trend 2: Digital Empowerment of Carbon Asset Management and Trading

Digital technologies such as blockchain are addressing the challenges of carbon asset traceability. Zero-carbon management platforms developed by companies like Envision Intelligent can quantify carbon reduction benefits through green electricity traceability.I'm sorry, but it seems that there is no content provided for translation. Please provide the text you would like me to translate.

Trend 3: International standards are becoming stricter, and low-carbon energy storage is more competitive.

The new EU battery regulations and other international standards are driving the global energy storage industry towards low-carbon development. According to predictions by the International Renewable Energy Agency, by 2050, the world will need to deploy 4000 GW of energy storage, with long-duration storage accounting for over 40%, and energy storage directly contributing to 15% of carbon reduction.I'm sorry, but it seems that the source text you provided is empty. Please provide the content you would like me to translate.

In Jiangsu Jingjiang, energy storage systems are converting green power into high-quality carbon assets; in Shanxi Changzhi, energy storage has become a key component of the smart energy system; in Zhejiang's virtual power plant, energy storage is creating substantial carbon reduction benefits through aggregation services. These projects collectively reveal a trend: energy storage is upgrading from a simple "regulation tool" to a "carbon asset creator."

Is your energy storage project ready to participate in the carbon market? Feel free to leave a comment in the discussion area:

What do you think are the main obstacles for energy storage to participate in the carbon market?
What practical experience does your project have in carbon asset development?
What aspect of the carbon market are you most interested in?

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