Robin Zeng, Chairman and CEO of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL), has outlined a bold vision for a zero-carbon future, stating that 2030 will mark the true beginning of the sustainable energy era, driven by rapid advances in battery technology, renewable energy, and artificial intelligence.
In a keynote address, Zeng highlighted how falling costs of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries and solar power—down nearly 80% over the past decade—have made clean energy not only technically viable but economically competitive. He noted that renewable energy combined with energy storage is already transforming industries such as mining and manufacturing, citing projects in Chile, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Pakistan, and the United States.
Zeng described the future energy system as distributed, intelligent, and circular, emphasizing the growing role of decentralized renewable power generation, AI-driven energy management, and large-scale recycling of battery materials. CATL has developed high-voltage grid-forming energy storage technology to stabilize power grids with high renewable penetration and is deploying it in China to power an off-grid industrial park supplying a 40GWh battery plant entirely with wind, solar, and storage.
He also stressed the importance of circular economy principles, noting CATL’s industry-leading recycling recovery rates of 99.6% for nickel and cobalt and 96.5% for lithium. According to Zeng, recycling and sustainable supply chains will be critical to scaling zero-carbon technologies globally.
Calling climate change fundamentally an energy and development challenge, Zeng urged global cooperation, policy alignment, and accelerated technology deployment. He suggested establishing special economic zones with standardized regulations to speed up manufacturing and reduce costs for clean energy infrastructure worldwide.
Zeng concluded that while science defines what is possible, engineering and manufacturing will determine how fast the world transitions to net-zero energy, reaffirming CATL’s commitment to innovation, global collaboration, and large-scale deployment of advanced energy technologies.
