China Proposes National Spot Market Rules for Renewable-Storage Joint Bidding

China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has published draft Basic Rules for Electricity Spot Markets that would let solar and wind farms participate in spot trading together with their co-located battery storage as a single bidding entity. The rules, released October 19, 2026, propose a January 1, 2027 implementation date and a five-year validity period, with public comments accepted until November 18.

How does joint bidding change renewable plant operations?

Under Article 8, a renewable generator can coordinate its generation forecast and battery charge-discharge schedule in one bid, rather than offering generation and storage as separate market participants. This lets operators shift output toward higher-priced periods when technically feasible and use storage to cover forecast deviations, potentially reducing imbalance costs. The 2023 interim rules already recognized storage and virtual power plants as eligible participants; the new draft explicitly extends joint participation across bidding, clearing, dispatch, settlement and performance assessment.

What other market reforms are included?

The draft broadens the definition of new market participants to include new-type energy storage, virtual power plants, load aggregators, smart microgrids and green electricity direct-connection projects. It establishes day-ahead, intraday and real-time trading (with 5- to 15-minute dispatch intervals) and adopts locational marginal pricing as the preferred clearing method to reflect supply-demand conditions and transmission constraints. Settlement moves to daily clearing with monthly billing, and the framework calls for stronger coordination between spot markets, medium- and long-term contracts, and ancillary services including frequency regulation and reserves.

Why does this matter for developers?

The rules formalize at national level what provinces such as Shandong have already piloted and what the NDRC promoted in 2025. They follow the 2025 electricity pricing reform that required renewable generation to enter the power market and have prices determined through transactions. For developers, joint bidding could significantly raise the commercial value of on-site batteries by integrating storage dispatch directly with electricity trading. However, detailed bidding formats, metering arrangements, charging restrictions and settlement calculations for combined operations will still need provincial implementation rules.

Read more about China’s electricity market reforms

Ecoverse analysis

If implemented as drafted, the rules create a national framework for renewable-storage hybrid participation that previously existed only in pilot provinces. The shift to locational marginal pricing and real-time 5-15 minute dispatch aligns China’s market design with international practice, potentially improving grid efficiency as renewable penetration grows.