On September 28, 2026, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), together with six other departments — including the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Commerce, the National Energy Administration and the State Administration for Market Regulation — formally issued the "Five-Year Plan for the Development of the New-Type Battery Industry" (the document itself is dated September 14). The plan lays out a roadmap for China's battery industry from 2026 to 2030, with its most closely watched goal being the initial large-scale application of all-solid-state batteries by around 2030. This matches earlier reporting by Xinhua and other state media confirming China's timeline for commercializing all-solid-state battery technology, and it echoes the core of the claim in an earlier news-monitoring summary that China aims to "achieve mass application of all-solid-state batteries before 2030." One small distinction is worth flagging: the plan's own wording is "around 2030" or "initial large-scale application," not a precise "by the end of 2030" deadline as some earlier summaries phrased it, and the plan likewise sets no specific annual output figure for all-solid-state batteries — a point explained further below.

The plan sets out 19 key tasks across five areas, backed by five dedicated special programs. Beyond solid-state batteries, it lays out several specific quantitative targets: long-life lithium batteries are to reach 15,000 charge-discharge cycles, and leading companies' product defect rates are to fall to the parts-per-billion (PPB) level — a shift the industry describes as moving from "mass manufacturing" to "high-consistency manufacturing." The plan also calls for breakthroughs in ionic conductivity, cycling stability, interfacial contact and cost control, aiming to clear the technical hurdles standing between solid-state batteries and mass production.

Notably, the plan's full title concerns the "new-type battery industry" as a whole, and its scope extends well beyond all-solid-state batteries. It centers on lithium batteries while also promoting sodium-ion batteries and flow batteries, and it calls for boosting the industrialization of aqueous batteries and ultra-fast-charging batteries. The plan further seeks to expand new battery applications into shipping, aviation, construction machinery and energy storage, and to strengthen battery recycling systems — all in support of China's long-term technological leadership in the new-energy sector.

The new five-year plan builds on rapid growth in China's battery industry during the previous (2021-2025) planning period. According to an official from the MIIT's Department of Electronic Information, the new-type battery industry's total output value topped one trillion yuan during that period, and the energy density of mass-produced battery cells exceeded 300 watt-hours per kilogram. Building on that base, the new plan calls for steady growth in industry scale, continued strengthening of innovation capacity across the supply chain, and major progress in developing new battery systems by 2030.

At the corporate level, the timelines of China's major battery makers broadly align with the official plan. CATL has repeatedly said its goal is to reach a technology readiness level of 7 to 8 (on its own 1-to-9 scale) by 2027, enabling small-batch production of all-solid-state batteries. CATL chairman Robin Zeng Yuqun said earlier this year that, on that same 1-to-9 scale, progress currently stands at around level 4, and that true mass production remains a long way off — large-scale application is unlikely before 2030, and the technology will likely first be used only in premium vehicle platforms. Separate reporting indicates CATL expects all-solid-state batteries to make up only around 1% of its total shipments by 2027, underscoring that this remains a small-batch rather than a mass-market stage.

BYD's target is small-batch installation of all-solid-state battery vehicles in 2027; according to reports, its self-developed sulfide-based all-solid-state cell has an energy density of roughly 400 watt-hours per kilogram. Geely has set out more detailed milestones: a prototype debut in 2026, small-batch industrialization of all-solid-state batteries with about 1,000 demonstration vehicles in 2027, and a broader industrialization rollout by 2030. Chery plans to build a 0.5 GWh pilot production line and complete sample battery packs in 2026, followed by vehicle demonstrations in 2027. Chinese Academy of Engineering member Ouyang Minggao has likewise projected that all-solid-state batteries will see their first vehicle application in 2027, with mass application following around 2030.

To accelerate the build-out of the all-solid-state battery supply chain, China has also formed a national-level industry alliance known as CASIP, whose members include CATL, BYD's battery unit FinDreams Battery, CALB, SVOLT Energy Technology, EVE Energy and Gotion High-Tech. The alliance's goal is to establish a complete all-solid-state battery supply chain by 2030, echoing the timeline set out in the national plan.

On the global competitive stage, Japan's Toyota has likewise set 2027 as the starting point for mass production of solid-state batteries, with its first products expected to go into premium Lexus EVs; Toyota holds roughly 40% of corporate patents in the field, more than any other single company. South Korea's Samsung SDI has also announced a 2027 start for mass production, targeting an energy density of 900 watt-hours per liter, while LG Energy Solution's mass-production timeline lags behind, expected around 2030. In terms of overall patent filings, Chinese companies together account for roughly 35% of global all-solid-state battery patent applications. The reason all-solid-state batteries draw such attention worldwide is that, compared with conventional liquid lithium-ion batteries, they offer higher energy density, longer driving range, and greater safety because they contain no flammable liquid electrolyte — qualities that make them a leading candidate for the next generation of core technology in electric vehicles and energy storage.

Even so, multiple reports note real-world challenges to implementing the plan. The plan itself sets no specific annual output (GWh) target for all-solid-state batteries, in contrast to the explicit volume targets set for lithium-ion and sodium-ion batteries. On cost, industry estimates put the per-cell cost of all-solid-state batteries at roughly three to five times that of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, while related tax incentives are due to expire at the end of 2028 — adding to the difficulty of near-term scale-up. Industry figures including SVOLT's chairman have said high-volume output of all-solid-state batteries may not arrive until after 2030; an executive at Changan's Deepal brand has called "large-scale application by 2030" the "most optimistic" scenario, suggesting 2035 is more realistic. These differing views suggest that, while the official plan sets a directional goal for all-solid-state batteries by 2030, the industry itself remains divided on the exact path and pace of getting there.

From a broader perspective, the plan is widely interpreted as a major step by China to consolidate its leadership in new-energy technology, and as an industrial-policy tool for responding to the pressures of the global energy transition. Batteries are a core component of electric vehicles, renewable-energy storage and grid-balancing systems, and all-solid-state batteries — with their higher energy density and greater safety — are seen as a key strategic high ground in the race for next-generation battery technology; whoever first achieves stable mass production stands to gain a first-mover advantage in the global EV and energy-storage markets. At the same time, the fact that Chinese, Japanese and South Korean companies are nearly all targeting small-batch production around 2027 and larger-scale commercialization around 2030 shows that this technology race has entered a decisive phase, and the quality and durability benchmarks set out in the plan are designed to help keep China's battery industry competitive across the entire supply chain.