GM and Redwood teaming up to make batteries for energy storage

Redwood Materials’ vigor retention strategy successful California. | Image: Redwood Materials

General Motors and Redwood Materials are joining forces yet again, this clip with the intent to physique vigor retention units made retired of recycled EV batteries.

The 2 companies signed a non-binding memorandum of knowing to physique vigor retention retired of US-manufactured batteries, arsenic good arsenic “second-life” EV packs from GM’s vehicles. The announcement comes connected the heels of Redwood’s determination to determination much aggressively into the vigor retention concern with the instauration of a caller division. The company’s archetypal task volition beryllium gathering a retention strategy for an AI improvement halfway successful California.

Battery retention systems play a important relation successful balancing vigor for the grid. These systems tin store vigor from a assortment of sources, including renewables similar upwind and solar, releasing it erstwhile needed, which helps prevention powerfulness during periods of debased demand.

The emergence of AI is putting expanding unit connected the grid, successful the US and globally. The steepest emergence successful planetary energy request is coming from caller information centers successful the US and China, arsenic good arsenic the manufacturing of electrical vehicles, batteries, star panels, and semiconductors.

GM has a preexisting concern with Redwood to recycle scrap from its artillery manufacturing facilities successful Warren, Ohio, and Spring Hill, Tennessee. The automaker says this caller woody volition assistance powerfulness its ambitions to grow beyond EV batteries and into grid absorption and vigor storage. GM has its ain vigor part that sells powerfulness banks, charging equipment, star panels, and absorption bundle to residential and commercialized customers.

“The marketplace for grid-scale batteries and backup powerfulness isn’t conscionable expanding, it’s becoming essential
infrastructure,” said Kurt Kelty, GM’s VP of batteries, propulsion, and sustainability, successful a statement. “Electricity request is climbing, and it’s lone going to accelerate. To conscionable that challenge, the U.S. needs vigor retention solutions that tin beryllium deployed quickly, economically, and made close present astatine home. GM batteries tin play an integral role.”

Redwood Materials was founded successful 2017 by Tesla’s erstwhile main technologist JB Straubel. In summation to breaking down scrap from Tesla’s battery-making process with Panasonic, Redwood recycles batteries from Ford, Toyota, Nissan, Specialized, Amazon, Lyft, Rad Power Bikes, Lime, stationary retention facilities, and others. The institution besides produces cathodes astatine a installation successful Nevada, and yet astatine its under-construction tract successful South Carolina.