Author | Zhou Zhiyu
A revolution in batteries has reached a critical point.
At the recent CATL supplier conference, CATL stated that by 2026, sodium-ion batteries will be widely applied in the fields of battery swapping, passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, and energy storage, with the potential to form a trend of &#34;sodium-lithium dual stars shining.&#34; A representative from CATL expressed to Wall Street Insight that CATL is optimistic about the prospects of sodium batteries, stating that sodium is definitely a good material.
In the past, sodium batteries were often seen as a &#34;scarecrow&#34; used to intimidate upstream lithium miners within CATL's landscape, and there were doubts in the market about when this technology could be applied on a large scale. CATL's recent statement clearly sets higher expectations for the upcoming sodium battery market.
Just this September, CATL's sodium battery received new national standard certification, clearing the last compliance barrier in the minds of OEMs.
This year, CATL also introduced the &#34;AB battery system.&#34; In one battery pack, there are lithium battery cells responsible for long endurance and sodium battery cells responsible for low-temperature resistance and cost reduction, which helps to mitigate the energy density shortcomings of sodium batteries while leveraging their cold resistance advantages.
Of course, in this trillion-level race, &#34;King Ning&#34; never lacks competitors. BYD launched its first sodium-ion battery production line in Xining, Qinghai, in July this year; EVE Energy's new sodium battery headquarters broke ground in December; and Rongbai Technology has signed a &#34;letter of commitment,&#34; vowing to become the largest supplier of sodium battery cathodes for CATL by 2026.
Zhao Ruirui, vice president of EVE Energy's Central Research Institute, told Wall Street Insight that the positioning of sodium batteries is to complement lithium batteries. The product advantages of lithium batteries have already been established, and &#34;in case of large-scale conflicts (referring to extreme supply chain games), you must have an alternative; you cannot let the other party control you.&#34;
In addition, the growing demand for AI data centers has also brought new opportunities for sodium batteries. Zhao Ruirui stated that computing power centers are not only major electricity consumers but also &#34;major heat producers.&#34; Under long-term high-temperature conditions, the structural stability of lithium batteries deteriorates, and there are even safety hazards, while sodium batteries perform far better than lithium batteries at high temperatures of 60°C.
Moreover, AI data centers require &#34;instant energy replenishment&#34; from UPS (uninterruptible power supply). The high power output characteristics of sodium batteries allow them to &#34;connect for a second&#34; at the moment of power outage, ensuring that data is not lost.
Although EVE Energy's sodium battery production capacity has not been widely rolled out, it has already been subjected to high-intensity verification by strategic customers ranked in the top ten, such as Huawei.
This is a smoke-free hunt. Everyone is betting that 2026 will be the &#34;year of industrialization&#34; for sodium batteries. Whoever can first reduce costs will hold the ticket to the next decade.
The timing of battery giants like CATL choosing to speak out is also quite appropriate.
In the past two years, lithium prices have fluctuated like a roller coaster. Although the sharp drop in 2024 has allowed the industry chain to &#34;take a breath,&#34; in the fourth quarter of 2025, the restless K-line of lithium carbonate prices once again rose, piercing through the 130,000 yuan/ton mark. This familiar pain instantly awakened the &#34;muscle memory&#34; of automakers and battery manufacturers—the suffocating feeling of being choked by upstream miners, which no one wants to experience a second time
Ding Yueli, head of China basic materials research at UBS Investment Bank, told Wall Street Insight that the lithium carbonate market will still be relatively tight in balance in 2026.
According to Ding's estimates, the expected demand for lithium carbonate from electric vehicles next year is expected to grow by 15% year-on-year, while energy storage is the key variable. UBS understands that the growth expectation for lithium carbonate from energy storage is that leading companies aim to double their targets next year, with large enterprises expecting an increase of over 70%. Therefore, calculating with a 50-60% increase, if energy storage experiences higher growth, it will bring upward demand risks for the lithium carbonate market.
CICC pointed out that the next upward cycle in the electric industry will be primarily driven by energy storage. For energy storage to explode, it must have extreme cost efficiency. When lithium prices rebound, only sodium batteries can act as that &#34;cost stabilizer.&#34;
This has also led to a state of &#34;anxiety&#34; in the market as lithium carbonate prices rise, and CATL hopes to encourage more users to accept sodium batteries at this time.
For the past decade, lithium has been the absolute king. Its price fluctuations dominate the rise and fall of trillion-dollar market values and determine the pricing of new vehicles.
However, this time, &#34;King Ning's&#34; gamble on sodium batteries, along with the collective follow-up of giants like EVE Energy and BYD, has effectively drawn a period at the end of this era.
As downstream manufacturers become more accepting of sodium batteries and as customer verification data accumulates, the leap from testing samples to large-scale products is just a matter of time.
This means that the energy competition after 2026 will no longer be a single-dimensional resource plunder but will move towards a multi-dimensional ecological balance. This will create a more resilient energy system. In this system, prices will no longer easily spiral out of control, and the supply chain will no longer be fragile.
The so-called &#34;gamble&#34; on sodium batteries is actually aimed at stabilizing fluctuations and seeking long-term stability.
Using the universality of sodium to resolve the scarcity of lithium, and using the certainty of technology to hedge against future uncertainties. This is what energy transformation should truly look like

"Ning Wang" makes a big bet on sodium batteries