AI|China’s Ganfeng secures orders amid surge in demand for energy storage, AI boom

China’s Ganfeng Lithium, a global giant of the lithium industry, says its orders have been booked through the first half of 2027 amid a surge in demand for energy storage systems (ESS) and a frenzy of investment in artificial intelligence data centres (AIDCs). “Our production capacity for the year is fully booked,” said Wang Xiaoshen, president and vice-chairman at the world’s largest metal lithium producer and lithium compounds supplier. Ganfeng also manufactures lithium-ion batteries. “The orders have already been scheduled through the first half of 2027,” Wang told the South China Morning Post on the sidelines of the 4th BNP Paribas Global Electric Vehicle and Mobility Conference. The demand was from both China and overseas markets, he added. The extended backlog came even after taking into account Ganfeng’s plan to increase its production volume by 50 per cent next year, according to Wang. The need for ESS has soared since 2023 owing to energy price fluctuations amid geopolitical tensions and the meteoric rise in the number of power-hungry AIDCs, principally benefiting manufacturers in Japan, South Korea and mainland China. Lithium-ion batteries are critical in ESS, as the rechargeable parts can stabilise an electricity network via the adoption of renewables such as solar that can operate as backup systems for AIDCs. Global lithium-ion battery ESS shipments mushroomed to 550 gigawatt-hours (GWh) last year, up more than 350 per cent from 121 GWh in 2022, data from Seoul-based SNE Research showed. Together with the continuous growth of the global electric vehicle (EV) market, more than half of China’s 23 lithium miners, including Ganfeng, logged rises of over 100 per cent year on year in their first-quarter net profit, citing soaring lithium carbonate prices and improved capacity utilisation. Wang said he was optimistic about the company’s full-year profits, after the lithium giant swung to a net profit of 1.84 billion yuan (US$270.3 million) in the March quarter from a net loss of 356 million yuan during the same period in 2025. During the past year, the contribution of lithium-ion batteries to Ganfeng’s total revenue climbed to 35.7 per cent from 31.2 per cent, the firm said. Ganfeng’s ESS orders for the coming two years came amid rising demand from Europe, while the markets in South Africa and Australia have begun to show a similar pattern as local grids need the systems to increase power capacity safely, said Wang. But while AIDCs have just started to drive Ganfeng’s businesses, Wang predicted that they were likely to contribute “significant growth” in the future, given the heavy investment in the sector. For the United States and other countries struggling with old grid networks and electricity shortfalls, the combination of solar panels and ESSs would be the “best solution”, he noted. In China, Wang said that there was certain to be a vast market for ESS, as new energy storage technology has been listed as one of the six strategic industries of the 15th five-year plan starting in 2026. However, the market has become crowded as Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd, known as CATL, and BYD – China’s two largest EV battery makers – are stepping up their efforts in ESS designed for grids. With charging times considered the last bottleneck of EVs compared with petrol cars, ESS can play a critical role at charging stations across China. In terms of facing the competition, Wang said that Ganfeng would accelerate its technological research and development in a bid to drive down costs.