China wants all-solid-state batteries in initial large-scale use by 2030, and it has put the target in writing. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) on Monday released its battery industry development plan for the fifteenth five-year period, covering 2026 through 2030.

The document, dated September 14, carries the signatures of seven government agencies, including MIIT, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Transport. That breadth signals the plan reaches beyond cell makers into transport planning, resources and trade policy.

The headline goal is commercialization of all-solid-state technology. The plan calls for faster breakthroughs in commercialization technologies, with work focused on improving ionic conductivity and cycling stability while optimizing costs. Specific measures named in the document include improving interfacial contact, extending cycle life, advancing pressure-system engineering and scaling up production of high-performance solid electrolytes.

On cell chemistry, the plan directs manufacturers to combine high-voltage, high-capacity cathode materials with new lithium-metal-based anodes and anode-free designs. It also calls for developing dedicated manufacturing equipment, including isostatic presses for solid-state battery production — a signal to China's toolmaking tier that a new equipment cycle is expected alongside the chemistry shift.

The plan sets two hard performance benchmarks. Long-life lithium batteries must reach 15,000 charge-discharge cycles. Leading manufacturers are told to push product defect rates down to the parts-per-billion (PPB) level — a quality standard that few high-volume production lines anywhere currently meet.

Beyond solid-state, the roadmap calls for breakthroughs in advanced electrode materials, new electrolytes and high-end auxiliary materials through 2030.

China intends to build a supply system centered on lithium batteries and complemented by sodium and flow batteries. For sodium-ion, the document emphasizes cost, safety and resource availability advantages, and calls for cold-resistant, high-energy-density power batteries plus energy storage batteries with long cycle lives. It also tasks the industry with strengthening its ability to commercialize all-solid-state and ultrafast-charging batteries.

Consolidation is a second pillar. The document explicitly supports corporate mergers and restructuring across the battery sector — notable for a Chinese industry that MIIT previously sought to rein in through capacity management rather than exit management. It also calls for faster exploration and development of domestic lithium, cobalt and other mineral resources to reduce import exposure.

Recycling obligations follow sales. The plan requires companies to establish used-battery collection systems aligned with their sales volumes. It also encourages them to build recycling capacity in major export markets where conditions permit — a provision that addresses pending EU battery rules as much as domestic waste streams.

On traceability, the document proposes a digital identity management system covering products including new energy vehicle (NEV) power batteries. It explores internationally accepted battery passport arrangements and promotes mutual recognition of carbon footprint data.

The battery plan lands three days after China's September 11 release of its fifteenth five-year development plan for the intelligent connected NEV industry, which targets a 70% share for NEVs in domestic new passenger vehicle sales by 2030. The earlier automotive plan called for tighter management of power battery production capacity. The battery plan fills in the technology, manufacturing and application priorities beneath that framework.

For battery plants and their equipment suppliers, the practical reading is this: Beijing has now aligned its automotive demand target, its capacity discipline and its next-generation chemistry timeline into one policy stack. Cell makers face consolidation pressure, quality targets measured in PPB, and a 2030 deadline to move solid-state from pilot lines to initial large-scale deployment.

What to watch next: whether MIIT issues implementing rules on capacity management for power battery production, how quickly domestic lithium and cobalt exploration projects win approvals, and which cell makers move first on isostatic press orders — an early indicator of genuine solid-state pilot production rather than announcement-stage intentions.