In 1998, in a Hefei office space of less than 20 square meters, 30-year-old university professor Cao Renxian embarked on his entrepreneurial journey with 500,000 yuan in savings and loans.
This young man from an ordinary family in Xiaoshan, Zhejiang, who had spent years studying power electronics technology at Hefei University of Technology, probably never imagined that 27 years later, his company Sungrow Power Supply Co.,Ltd. (300274.SZ) would approach the 300 billion yuan market capitalization threshold amid the new energy industry winter, fundamentally reshaping the global energy equipment industry landscape through explosive growth in energy storage business.
"Let everyone enjoy clean electricity" - this was the idealistic seed Cao Renxian planted in university laboratories back then. Under this private entrepreneur's leadership, Sungrow Power Supply Co.,Ltd. has begun demonstrating its "white horse" characteristics in the solar-storage sector.
Driven by strong domestic and international energy storage demand and catalyzed by the AIDC market sentiment, Sungrow's stock price has begun a new round of significant gains since the semi-annual report disclosure.
On September 5, Sungrow Power Supply Co.,Ltd. surged another 16.67%, closing at 135.34 yuan per share with trading volume reaching 21.71 billion yuan, achieving a latest market capitalization of 280.6 billion yuan and hitting a historical high.
Over the past week, Sungrow's stock price has risen 35.52%, with gains exceeding 100% since July, and the dynamic P/E ratio has soared from less than 10 times in July to the current 18 times.
Based on his 30.46% shareholding, Cao Renxian's stake value has reached 85.4 billion yuan, securing his position as the top solar-storage tycoon.
**Strategic Gear Shift**
Cao Renxian's entrepreneurial foundation has always revolved around a core proposition: how to transform the technological potential of renewable energy into industrial strength.
After graduating with a master's degree in 1993 and remaining at the university as a faculty member, he focused on renewable energy generation research. This academic foundation fostered industrial sensitivity that enabled Sungrow to stay ahead at critical moments.
Looking back at Sungrow's transformation path, the early bet on energy storage four years ago became key to navigating industry cycles. In 2021, when solar inverter business still contributed over 60% of company revenue, management gradually shifted R&D investment toward energy storage technology.
This forward-looking positioning has yielded rich returns from 2024 to 2025.
In the first half of 2025, Sungrow's energy storage system shipments approached the full-year 2024 volume, with full-year shipments expected to reach 40-50 GWh.
Although the previously core solar inverter business growth slowed to 17.06% and its revenue share dropped to 35.21%, the energy storage business became Sungrow's largest revenue source with 127.78% year-over-year revenue growth and 40.89% revenue contribution.
Meanwhile, the energy storage business's impressive 39.92% gross margin has become Sungrow's profit "cash cow." In comparison, Hithium, whose main business is also energy storage system integration, has seen gross margins decline continuously over five years to 17%, while CATL's energy storage business gross margin is only 25.52%.
In fact, Cao Renxian's persistence in "anti-involution" has extended from solar to energy storage. At the 2024 Photovoltaic Industry Annual Conference, Cao Renxian, as Chairman of the China Photovoltaic Industry Association, called for industry self-discipline in his address.
Cao Renxian's profit formula is hidden in a global map.
In the first half of 2025, Sungrow's overseas revenue reached 25.379 billion yuan, up 88.32% year-over-year, with overseas revenue share surging from 35% to 58.3% between 2023 and 2025.
Notably, 2023 to 2025 marked Sungrow's "overtaking cycle" against Tesla energy storage in the European market. In 2023, Tesla occupied 28% of Europe's large-scale storage market with Megapack's first-mover advantage, while Sungrow held only 10%. Cao Renxian keenly detected European users' special requirements for grid compatibility and pushed the team to develop customized solutions. By 2024, Sungrow's market share jumped to 21%, further breaking through to 35% in 2025, completing its overtaking of Tesla.
According to Wood Mackenzie reports, during the same period, Sungrow's North American market share also increased from 5% to 12%, while maintaining a stable 48% market share in the Middle East with absolute dominance.
Now, Cao Renxian has taken another new step.
The company revealed in investor interaction records that it has established an AIDC business unit, planning to combine power-end technology accumulation with data center energy demands.
Although he admitted, "Currently, the company doesn't have relevant customers yet, but initial contacts have been very promising."
According to GGII forecasts, global data center energy storage battery shipments will reach 15 GWh in 2025, surging to 300 GWh by 2030.
Management also emphasized that Sungrow's AIDC positioning is not starting from scratch, as this path is highly consistent with the previous logic of extending from solar inverters to energy storage systems. "First, the company has substantial technology accumulation and innovation achievements awaiting application in power-end and power electronics conversion technology, providing good technical synergy with AIDC power systems. Second, with rapid AI and data center construction, global data center energy, especially green electricity, is tightening, and the company has advantages in providing comprehensive green electricity solutions."
The mere release of this signal has already created ripples in the capital market. Since July, the company's stock price has gained over 100%.
**Valuation Reconstruction**
Reviewing Sungrow's capital operations, Cao Renxian has consistently grasped key timing. Facing industry challenges, Cao Renxian demonstrates dual characteristics of scientist and entrepreneur.
His two refinancing rounds in 2016 and 2021 raised 2.6 billion yuan and 3.6 billion yuan respectively, precisely targeting R&D innovation and global marketing system construction.
Now, amid the wave of new energy companies listing in Hong Kong, Sungrow has also announced plans to issue H-shares and list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Previously, new energy companies including CATL, Eve Energy Co.,Ltd. (300014.SZ), Sunwoda Electronic Co.,Ltd. (300207.SZ), and Hithium have been progressively pursuing Hong Kong listings. CATL's Hong Kong listing achieved a 25% premium over A-shares, while Duradentity (6960.HK), viewed as "Hong Kong's first AIDC stock," achieved P/E ratios exceeding 20 times after listing.
Clearly, Cao Renxian's Sungrow also hopes to enhance global influence through the Hong Kong stock market and gain global capital recognition.
The Hong Kong listing is expected not only to boost Sungrow's valuation but also solve cross-border capital management challenges in globalization. The company's foreign exchange gains reached 830 million yuan in the first half of 2025, and as overseas business proportions increase, Hong Kong dollar/US dollar-denominated financing channels will effectively hedge currency risks.
Notably, Sungrow announced in October 2024 its plan to issue GDRs in Frankfurt, Germany, with fundraising capped at 4.822 billion yuan for Hefei's 20 GWh energy storage equipment project and overseas 50 GW inverter plus 15 GWh energy storage expansion projects. In July 2025, Sungrow indicated on investor interaction platforms that the overseas GDR project remains in progress, but specific issuance timing depends on regulatory approval duration and market conditions, making timing uncertain.
Overseas capacity deployment is a crucial driver for its next growth phase. Public information shows its 15 GWh facility in Hungary will commence production in Q3 2025, while the 20 GWh Thailand factory has begun planning.
Yangtze Securities' new energy team believes Sungrow's "Davis Double-Click" will continue, with the core being domestic and international large-scale storage demand likely continuing to exceed expectations.
In the US market, 2025 demand expectations may shift from "cliff decline" to "rush deliveries," with Q4 US potentially seeing "rush construction starts," providing support for next year's delivery demand. IRA impacts are also expected to be addressed through binding Japanese and Korean production capacity.
In non-US markets, Yangtze Securities' new energy team believes markets including Europe, Australia, South America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East are gradually delivering explosive growth, including doubled installations in the UK and Australia in the first half. Previous lithium battery price declines are also expected to drive continued high growth in long-tail emerging markets. Additionally, accelerated domestic independent storage and overseas commercial storage explosions will further boost company profits.
Meanwhile, multiple brokerages maintain recommend, overweight, and buy ratings while raising price targets.
Cao Renxian once shared three books: "Innovation and Entrepreneurship," "Insanely Simple," and "Emotional Intelligence," perhaps containing his success formula - using innovation as the engine, focusing on subtraction, and capturing opportunities through insight.
As the new energy industry enters deep adjustment, Cao Renxian is also proving that corporate competitiveness comes from precise grasp of technological trends and innovative creation of industrial value.
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