1、 Expanding production capacity in three regions

As one of the representatives of long-term energy storage technology, the iron chromium flow battery has a cycle life of over 20000 times and can meet 25 years of use with one investment. Its high safety and low electrolyte cost have attracted much attention in the field of new energy storage.

This young enterprise, founded in 2020, is expanding its production capacity at an astonishing pace. Wang Qi revealed, "In the next two years, we will build three major production bases across the country

According to Wang Qi, the southern base is rooted in Huiyang District, Huizhou, Guangdong Province, backed by the mature industrial chain and strong energy storage demand of the Pearl River Delta; The central base is located in Lankao County, Henan Province, radiating the rapidly developing new energy market in the Central Plains region; The northern base is located in Zhungeer Banner, Ordos, Inner Mongolia, fully utilizing the abundant wind and photovoltaic resources and low energy costs in the area. After all three major bases are put into operation, the annual production capacity of each factory will reach 3GWh, which is sufficient to support the market expansion demand of China National Energy Storage Corporation in the next two years.

Our layout is not only about expanding production capacity, but also about deeply optimizing the supply chain and regional markets, "Mr. Wang explained. In the new energy industry, the reasonable distribution of production capacity directly affects the cost and response speed of enterprises, and CNOOC Energy Storage's "three location strategy" is an important bargaining chip for responding to industry competition.

2、 Chemical power plants are equipped with AI 'wings'

In the new energy industry, technological leadership is the core of breakthrough. And the R&D strength of CNOOC Energy Storage can be called a "luxury" lineup.

We are a typical industry education integration enterprise led by Academician Xu Chunming, with 18 professors participating in research and development, "Wang Qi introduced. This top-notch research team covers the full chain of technological breakthroughs from materials science to electrochemical mechanisms, and then to engineering implementation.

In terms of hardware, the laboratory of CNOOC Energy Storage can be called a "national configuration" - relying on the State Key Laboratory, the national energy storage technology industry education integration innovation platform and the national engineering center. According to Wang Qi, the hardware equipment costs of the three centers all exceed 500 million yuan. "We have the best hardware and experimental equipment," he said

The most remarkable achievement is the breakthrough of CNOOC Energy Storage in the field of AI. Starting from 2022, CNOOC Energy Storage has launched the world's first exclusive large model for iron chromium flow batteries - FlowBD, and will upgrade to FlowBD-R1 version by the end of 2024 in conjunction with DeepSeek. Previously, optimizing a material could require tens of thousands of experiments, but now AI can narrow down the screening range to the order of hundreds, increasing research and development efficiency by dozens of times. ”Wang Yan stated.

While the industry is still struggling with data from tens of thousands of experiments, the FlowBD big model of China National Offshore Energy Storage has brought research and development into the "thinking chain era". The FlowBD-R1 inference engine, born in 2024, is like installing a "time-space compressor" for battery research and development, turning the traditional "marathon" into a "hundred meter sprint". The formulas that used to require the consumption of tons of electrolyte for verification have now been rehearsed in the digital world through deep learning neural networks.

Based on the strong technological barriers created by itself, currently, the 500kW iron chromium flow battery energy storage module and equipment of CNOOC Energy Storage have been selected as the first (set) major technical equipment in the national energy field; The iron chromium flow battery has been listed as a new technology and product in the field of new infrastructure by Beijing. It is encouraged to promote its application in the construction of new infrastructure projects and provide financial support to projects that meet the requirements; At the same time, it has entered the recommended directory of green and low-carbon advanced technologies by the Beijing Municipal Development and Reform Commission, and has national energy construction investment enterprises and local government industrial landing, energy storage development and construction cooperation projects, with a very broad market prospect.

3、 Looking forward to transitioning from 'technically feasible' to 'commercially explosive'

When asked how to view the phenomenon of "involution" in the new energy industry, Wang Qi said that "involution is a double-edged sword".

In his view, the fierce competition in the industry precisely proves the strength of China's new energy manufacturing industry. Only mature industries can support so many companies to participate in competition. However, on the other hand, the disorderly price war has also led many companies into a vicious cycle of "no orders without price reduction, and losses without price reduction".

The only way to solve the problem of internal competition is to establish real barriers through technology, "Wang Qi emphasized. In the strategy of CNOOC Energy Storage, the long lifespan, high safety, and low cost of iron chromium flow batteries are its core competitiveness.

We have actually been doing things that no one in the industry has done before. We not only produce products, but also build the entire industry chain of iron chromium flow batteries, "Wang Qi said. China National Offshore Energy Storage is still increasing its research and development investment." The technology iteration in the new energy industry is extremely fast, and only continuous innovation can maintain its leading position

In addition, according to Wang Qi, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has taken the lead in formulating many standards within the industry. CNOOC Energy Storage, in collaboration with research institutions, universities, and large state-owned enterprises, has taken the lead in formulating standards for mechanism research, core raw materials, intelligent manufacturing production lines, and project construction.

CNOOC Energy Storage has currently participated in the development of three standards: "NB/T 11487-2024 General Technical Requirements for Box Type Liquid Flow Battery Energy Storage Systems", "NB/T 11489-2024 General Technical Conditions for Iron Chromium Liquid Flow Batteries", and "NB/T 11488-2024 General Technical Conditions for Converter of Liquid Flow Battery Energy Storage Systems". It has led the organization of the development of three industry standards: "Iron Chromium Liquid Flow Batteries Part 4: Technical Requirements and Testing Methods for Ionic Conductive Membrane", "Requirements for Electrolyte Recovery for Iron Chromium Liquid Flow Batteries", and "Iron Chromium Liquid Flow Batteries Part 2: Technical Requirements and Testing Methods for Bipolar Plates".

Although the current focus is mainly on the domestic market, the ambition of China National Offshore Energy Storage is not limited to this. The demand for flow batteries is very strong in overseas markets, especially in high electricity price regions such as Europe, America, Japan, and South Korea, "Wang Qi revealed that the company is preparing for overseas market expansion plans and will gradually promote international layout in the future.

When asked about the vision of CNOOC Energy Storage, Wang Qi replied, "We want users to achieve an economic turning point." Indeed, in the wave of the new energy revolution, "economy" has always been the last threshold for large-scale application. Zhonghai Energy Storage is using iron chromium flow batteries as a pivot to leverage this critical turning point - the turning point from "technically feasible" to "commercially explosive".

Perhaps, as Wang Qi said, "Industry cycles will always fluctuate, but the ones who can truly go further are always those enterprises that hold core technologies." And China National Offshore Energy Storage is becoming such a benchmark.