CATL lands 60 GWh sodium‑ion deal

CATL said it signed a three-year deal to supply 60 gigawatt-hours of sodium-ion batteries to Beijing HyperStrong Technology for energy storage systems. (msn.com) (investing.com) The companies announced the agreement on April 27, and CATL said HyperStrong will be its first strategic partner for sodium-ion batteries in energy storage. Bloomberg reported CATL did not disclose a deal value. (electrek.co) (bloomberg.com) Sodium-ion batteries work like lithium-ion batteries, but they move sodium instead of lithium between the electrodes when charging and discharging. The appeal is lower reliance on scarcer metals, plus better performance in very cold weather and some stationary-storage use cases. (ess-news.com) (prnewswire.com) CATL has been building toward this for months. HyperStrong said in a December 2025 announcement that it had signed a broader ten-year cooperation pact with CATL, including procurement of at least 200 gigawatt-hours of battery cells from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2028. (hyperstrong.com) (prnewswire.com) Earlier this month, CATL used its April 21 Super Technology Day in Beijing to argue sodium-ion is ready for mass manufacturing. The company said its Naxtra sodium-ion battery is aimed at extreme temperatures and energy-storage applications. (prnewswire.com) For storage projects, CATL’s sodium-ion cell is designed to fit the same enclosure dimensions as its 587 amp-hour lithium storage cell. ESS News reported CATL claims about 160 watt-hours per kilogram, 97% system energy-conversion efficiency, more than 15,000 cycles at 80% capacity retention, and operation from minus 40 to 70 degrees Celsius. (ess-news.com) CATL said in late 2025 that sodium-ion batteries would enter large-scale deployment in 2026 across battery swapping, passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, and energy storage. This deal gives that roadmap a named customer and a defined volume. (ess-news.com) (cnevpost.com) Industry outlets described the 60 gigawatt-hour order as the largest sodium-ion battery deal announced so far. Reuters called it CATL’s first major sodium-ion commercial order for energy storage. (pv-magazine.com) (msn.com) The immediate test is execution: CATL says sodium-ion is moving from lab work to volume production, and HyperStrong now has 60 gigawatt-hours riding on that claim. (prnewswire.com) (investing.com)