Recently, the Shanxi Yiye 150 MW/205 MWh standalone ESS, undertaken by Zhongrun Huarui Construction Co., Ltd., officially commenced construction in Beiwang Town, Fushan County, Linfen City, Shanxi Province. The project adopts the advanced technical route of “flywheel energy storage + LFP battery,” with a total installed capacity of 150 MW, including 50 MW/5 MWh of flywheel ESS installations and 100 MW/200 MWh of lithium battery ESS installations.

[How Should Zinc Consumption Be Viewed Against the Backdrop of Geopolitical Conflicts?] Q1 2026 had passed, and the overall recovery in post-holiday consumption was somewhat delayed. How would consumption perform going forward?

Abu Dhabi's Department of Energy ('DoE') has expanded its Solar Self-Supply Policy to the residential sector. Villa and eligible building owners can now install rooftop solar and battery energy storage systems ('BESS'). Following its February launch for agriculture, this new phase introduces a simplified regulatory framework to streamline installations and grid connections. This move supports the broader 'UAE' target of reaching 20 GW of total solar capacity by 2030, up from 6.7 GW in 2025.

On April 1, Galan Lithium announced that Phase 1 construction of its Hombre Muerto West (HMW) Project has been successfully completed. The project has now fully transitioned to the commissioning and operational readiness phase, with all major process facilities, including the nanofiltration plant, installed and electrical and mechanical testing underway. Supported by substantial brine inventory, first lithium chloride production is expected in 2026. As of April 2026, the project has 10,000 tonnes LCE of brine inventory available for processing. Initial production capacity is 4,000 tonnes LCE per annum, with plans to expand to 5,200 tonnes LCE in the near term.

The Philippines Department of Energy ('DOE') is accelerating the grid entry of 12 solar projects totaling 1,284 MW for April operation. This move aims to mitigate the impact of Middle East developments on global oil markets. These solar installations, alongside 10 other renewable projects, will bring 1,471 MW of accelerated capacity online. The 'DOE' is actively coordinating with grid and regulatory bodies to resolve interconnection, inspection, and registration requirements to prevent delays. This rapid deployment supports the nation's target of a 35% renewable energy share by 2030 and follows recent plans to auction an additional 25 GW of green energy capacity by 2035 under its flagship auction program.

In late March 2026, the Philippine DOE mandated the expedited grid integration of 22 renewable energy projects (1,471 MW) by April 2026 to mitigate fossil fuel price volatility stemming from Middle East conflicts. This emergency deployment is heavily concentrated in solar PV, with 12 projects accounting for a dominant 1,284 MW of the total capacity.

With utilization rates among Korean battery manufacturers remaining around 50% and reflecting a timing mismatch between demand and supply, utilization is increasingly emerging as a key indicator of cost structure and operational efficiency in a context where capacity expansion has preceded demand realization.

Markets frequently mistake an industry's sudden breakout for its origin. China's long-duration energy storage (LDES, ≥4 hours) sector did not abruptly emerge in 2026. Following policy incubation (2023-2024) and initial scaling (2025), 2026 marks a definitive inflection point, driven by a validated, closed-loop business model and exponential growth in grid-connected capacity.

Chinese Academy of Sciences, released the Energy Storage Industry Research White Paper 2026, forecasting that global cumulative installed battery energy storage capacity will surge by 8-17 times from 2024 to 2035 (166 GW to 1,414 GW-2,885 GW). The global ESS installations landscape will gradually expand from being dominated by China, the US, and Europe to regions such as India, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. CNESA expected that, after experiencing explosive growth in the early stage, the industry would enter a phase of moderated growth. From 2026 to 2030, the compound annual growth rate under the conservative and Li Auto scenarios will be about 20.7% and 25.5%, respectively. Although the relative growth rate will slow down, the absolute increment will remain at a high level.

SMM, March 31 – In March 2026, China's metallurgical-grade alumina output rose 10.56% month-on-month but fell 3.33% year-on-year. From a capacity perspective, as of the end of March, the national installed capacity stood at approximately 113.22 million tonnes, with some growth driven by the gradual commissioning of new alumina projects in Guangxi. However, operating capacity declined 2.1% month-on-month and 8.7% year-on-year. Although new projects were brought online, they were still in trial production at the end of March and did not contribute effective output, leading to a decline in the overall operating rate. Looking at output structure, total production in March increased from February, but average daily output declined. The main reasons are: on one hand, several enterprises in Guizhou and Guangxi carried out various levels of maintenance; among them, one Guizhou-based company shut down part of its production lines due to operational pressure, significantly lowering the operating rate in southern China. On the other hand, northern regions such as Henan and Shandong saw relatively stable operations, mainly fulfilling long-term contract deliveries. In Shanxi, some enterprises continued upgrading their production lines, causing a slight decline in the operating rate. These factors combined led to a month-on-month drop in average daily output in March. Looking ahead to April, the oversupply pattern in the alumina market is expected to persist. First, newly added capacity in Guangxi and Chongqing will be gradually released, driving overall output higher and intensifying competition within the industry. Second, attention should be paid to the indirect impact of geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East: some overseas alumina originally destined for the Middle East has been forced to be re-exported to China, resulting in an unexpected increase in China's imported alumina volume. This will likely impact the domestic market and may restrain the release of domestic production capacity. Based on a comprehensive assessment, China's operating alumina capacity in April 2026 is expected to be around 86.63 million tonnes.