Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. (CATL) has officially started production at its new battery manufacturing base in Yanzhou District, Jining City, Shandong Province.
Original By NLS
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. (CATL) has officially started production at its new battery manufacturing base in Yanzhou District, Jining City, Shandong Province. The plant, operated by its subsidiary Shandong Times New Energy Technology Co., marks CATL’s first major facility in northern China—and its largest planned capacity in the region.
The project is being developed in three phases. The first phase, now online, has an annual capacity of 60 gigawatt-hours (GWh), producing batteries for both energy storage systems and electric vehicles. Phases two and three are expected to come online over the next two years, eventually forming a world-class battery manufacturing cluster with projected output in the hundreds of billions of yuan.
Built to “Lighthouse Factory” and “Zero-Carbon” standards, the facility is equipped with state-of-the-art digital and intelligent production lines. At the inauguration ceremony, senior officials from Shandong Province and Jining City joined CATL Chairman and CEO Robin Zeng to witness the signing of several strategic cooperation agreements. These include joint initiatives in zero-carbon cities, industrial electrification, battery swapping infrastructure, and the electrification of inland and coastal shipping.
During the event, Shandong Party Secretary Lin Wu met with Zeng to discuss building a zero-carbon industrial ecosystem. Lin said the province would continue to improve its business environment and fully support CATL’s growth in Shandong. Zeng noted that CATL aims to go beyond battery manufacturing by applying its product and technological strengths—and its own decarbonization experience—to help build an efficient, clean, and secure zero-carbon industrial system. He also hinted at bringing more of CATL’s future innovations to the region.
Looking ahead, CATL and Shandong plan to explore broader cooperation, including a province-wide EV battery swap network, low-altitude aviation around the Bohai Rim, and electrification of regional shipping routes. The two sides also plan to accelerate construction of a zero-carbon industrial park in Dongying and roll out more large-scale decarbonization demonstration projects across the province.