CATL unveils Tener Sodium-Ion storage system: 15,000-cycle lifespan and 30-year durability

On June 22, 2026, CATL officially launched its Tener Sodium-Ion energy storage system at a product release event in Munich, Germany. The system is designed to address industry challenges regarding flexibility, operational stability, and long-term cost-efficiency.

Key technical features

The Tener system features a fully modular architecture with a rated energy capacity exceeding 30MWh. Each module weighs less than 42 tons, allowing a 1GWh site to be constructed using 34 modules.

The system incorporates five core technological advancements:

• Extended lifespan: Achieves 15,000 cycles at 25°C, providing a system life of 25–30 years based on a 70% State of Health (SOH) standard.

• Wide temperature adaptability: Utilising dipole wide-temperature technology, the system retains over 92% capacity at -20°C and supports over 10,000 cycles at 45°C without requiring additional insulation or forced cooling.

• Intrinsic safety: The system reduces cell expansion force by 40%, lowers gas generation by 35%, and maintains a thermal runaway surface temperature of approximately 200°C (about 60% lower than lithium-ion batteries). It is designed to be fire and explosion-proof even under extreme conditions.

• Energy efficiency: Through an optimised top-ventilation design and efficient liquid cooling, the system’s self-consumption rate has been reduced from the industry average of 2% to 1%.

• Community friendly: Operating at a noise level of 65dB – 10dB lower than traditional equipment – the system is suitable for deployment closer to load centers.

Operational intelligence and reliability

CATL has developed a proprietary bidirectional voltage control Power Conversion System (PCS) that adapts to the sodium-ion battery’s 1.5–3.65V range, stabilising output at 690V. This improves Round Trip Efficiency (RTE) by nearly 2%. Furthermore, the system features a millisecond-level self-healing capability that can isolate faults and restore power to non-affected areas within 350ms, reducing potential downtime losses.

Commercialisation and availability

CATL has established a complete supply chain for sodium-ion batteries, with mass production capabilities for anode and cathode materials. The company is expanding production with 40GWh of capacity in Fuding and plans for an additional 160GWh in Jining. The Tenor system is compatible with existing lithium-ion storage platforms, allowing for seamless integration without redesigns. Domestic delivery in China is scheduled to begin in September 2026, with a target of 1GWh in shipments by the end of the year, followed by a global rollout in 2027.