Three Major Policy Boosts for Microgrids in 2026: A New Era in China’s Energy Landscape

As a crucial link between the new energy power system and end-user energy consumption, microgrids have become a focal point for policy promotion. At the start of 2026, three significant national documents were released, collectively outlining the future development roadmap for China’s microgrid industry. This marks the beginning of a rapidly evolving policy opportunity window.

Policy Opportunities and Top-Level Design

On December 31, 2025, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration jointly issued the “Guiding Opinions on Promoting High-Quality Development of Power Grids,” which set the development direction for the entire grid system. This guidance states that by 2030, a new grid platform will be established, primarily based on trunk and distribution networks, with intelligent microgrids as a beneficial supplement. Intelligent microgrids are considered a new business model in the power sector, capable of self-balancing and self-regulating. Their value lies in supporting diverse stakeholders, integrating green energy consumption scenarios, facilitating nearby development and local consumption of renewable energy, and enhancing power supply reliability in remote areas and at the grid’s edge.

Following this, the “Application Guidelines” provided a concrete blueprint for the implementation of microgrids in the industrial sector. On January 9, 2026, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Development and Reform Commission, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the State Administration for Market Regulation, and the National Energy Administration jointly released the “Guidelines for the Construction and Application of Industrial Green Microgrids (2026-2030).” This is the first national guideline specifically addressing industrial scenarios. The guidelines present quantifiable targets, such as the principle that newly constructed solar and wind power generation projects in industrial enterprises and parks should ideally self-consume at least 60% of their output annually. They also outline systematic directions for construction principles, content, models, application scenarios, and requirements, marking a transition from “encouraging exploration” to “standardized promotion” in industrial microgrid construction.

Simultaneously, pilot demonstrations are being widely rolled out. On January 6, 2026, the National Energy Administration announced the first batch of pilot projects for enhancing the construction capabilities of new power systems, with “intelligent microgrids” listed as one of seven key pilot directions, featuring seven selected projects. This list showcases diverse application scenarios, from Jilin Oilfield to Xinjiang’s borders, from industrial parks to port vessels, providing valuable experimental grounds for technology verification and model innovation. The central government places significant importance on microgrid construction, emphasizing in various documents the need for smart grid development and the acceleration of projects integrating microgrids, virtual power plants, and energy storage systems.

What is a Microgrid?

A microgrid is a small-scale power generation and distribution system composed of distributed energy resources, energy storage devices, and energy conversion systems, capable of operating both connected to and independently from the main grid. It represents a significant innovation in the flexible and efficient utilization of distributed energy and can effectively promote the integrated development of distributed and large power grids. According to the “Guidelines for the Construction and Application of Industrial Green Microgrids (2026-2030),” an industrial green microgrid primarily aims to provide green power to industrial users. It integrates photovoltaic, wind power, efficient heat pumps, new energy storage, hydrogen energy, waste heat, pressure, and gas, as well as smart energy management systems, to create a comprehensive energy system that interacts harmoniously with the grid and achieves collaborative autonomy in the industrial production process.

Industrial green microgrids involve all aspects of energy supply, networks, loads, and storage, incorporating various new models and business types, such as incremental distribution networks, intelligent microgrids, integrated source-grid-load-storage projects, green electricity direct connections, and virtual power plants. Research by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology shows that many industrial enterprises and parks are actively exploring industrial green microgrid construction, with over 300 projects already in operation nationwide. Overall, breakthroughs in technology and equipment related to microgrids continue, while the mechanisms for power auxiliary service markets are gradually improving. A number of integrated energy service providers have accumulated rich experience and case studies in construction and operation. However, the overall development of industrial green microgrids remains in the pilot and demonstration phase, facing challenges in technical standards, market mechanisms, and coordination with the main grid.

How to Build Industrial Microgrids

The Application Guidelines clearly outline six major construction components for industrial green microgrids, including renewable energy generation, utilization of industrial waste energy, clean low-carbon hydrogen production and utilization, applications of new energy storage, power conversion and flexible interconnection, and digital energy-carbon management systems. New energy storage plays a critical role in microgrid systems. To meet renewable energy consumption demands, energy storage methods such as lithium-ion batteries, flow batteries, hydrogen storage, and compressed air can be selected based on typical daily power load curves and renewable energy output characteristics, facilitating peak shaving and valley filling for green power utilization across time periods. For frequency and voltage support, appropriate energy storage methods can be chosen to enhance the system’s active and reactive power regulation capabilities, improving power quality and supply reliability.

The construction model is flexible, catering to different enterprises’ conditions, including self-financed construction and third-party co-construction. In the self-financed model, industrial enterprises or parks independently invest in and operate the microgrid, aiming to increase the proportion of green power use and ensure safe electricity supply. In the third-party co-construction model, industrial enterprises collaborate with qualified third-party service companies to plan, invest, construct, and operate the project through energy management contracts or financing leases. The operational responsibilities, including system management and maintenance, can be delegated to the third-party service providers, who also offer services such as energy-saving diagnostics and financing.

Four Major Application Scenarios

The vitality of microgrids lies in their deep integration with application scenarios. The Application Guidelines precisely identify four typical industrial scenarios that unlock differentiated value for microgrids:

• High Energy-Consumption Applications: Industries such as steel, petrochemicals, building materials, and nonferrous metals exhibit characteristics of large-scale and high-energy consumption. The industrial green microgrid should utilize waste heat, pressure, and gas resources within the facility, providing substantial green power. For example, solar photovoltaic facilities can be constructed on rooftops and slopes to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and external power supply.
• Flexible Applications: Industries like machinery, light industry, textiles, automotive, and battery manufacturing exhibit flexible and discrete energy consumption patterns. The industrial green microgrid should possess strong capabilities for clean energy output and load forecasting. By reasonably configuring interruptible load management platforms and energy storage facilities, production schedules can be adjusted flexibly to increase renewable energy consumption and reduce energy costs.
• Adjustable Large-Scale Applications: Industries such as electrolytic aluminum, polysilicon, and hydrogen production exhibit continuous production processes and strong tolerance to short-term power fluctuations. The industrial green microgrid should leverage load flexibility as a sizable real-time adjustment resource, enhancing deep interaction with the grid.
• High-Reliability Applications: Industries with high reliability requirements depend on precision equipment that demands continuous operation. The industrial green microgrid must ensure power quality management, rapid fault isolation, and backup power support to construct an efficient and reliable power supply system.

With a solid policy framework now in place, the focus for the industry will shift from “whether to build” to “how to build well” and “how to achieve mutual benefits.” This will require collaboration across the industry chain on technical standards, exploration of more sustainable business models, and the establishment of efficient interaction mechanisms between grid companies and diverse investment entities. It is foreseeable that, propelled by robust policies, a more intelligent, green, and resilient distributed energy landscape will rapidly unfold across China’s industrial and urban-rural scenarios.

The 14th International Energy Storage Summit and Exhibition (ESIE 2026) will be held from March 31 to April 3, 2026, at the Beijing Capital International Convention Center. The summit, themed “Scenario Innovation, Value Reconstruction, Global Win-Win,” aims to provide insights into technological innovations, market trends, and global opportunities, driving the high-quality development of the new energy storage industry. We sincerely invite industry peers to关注并参与ESIE 2026这一年度盛会.