What happens when a technology is so good, the minute it’s a little less good, it’s rendered almost useless?
That’s when it’s time to give it a second life, says Miguel Resendiz, Marketing Manager of BC-based startup Moment Energy. Moment Energy repurposes end-of-life electric vehicle (EV) batteries into stable energy sources.
“These are incredibly high-quality batteries that are designed to discharge very fast and store enough energy to give whatever mileage that vehicle is designed to give,” says Resendiz.
But, just like the battery in your phone, EV batteries degrade over time.
“Most EV batteries retire from vehicles at an average of 80% state of health, so you lose the efficiency and convenience that you first had because you’re not getting the same mileage out of that battery, but it’s still too early to get it recycled,” Resendiz says.
That’s when a battery is often replaced by a brand-new, healthy battery. Which begs the question: what happens to the old battery, which often has at least a good three-quarters of its health left?
It can be either recycled or even better, says Resendiz: repurposed.
“Repurposing these high-quality EV batteries, which are designed for mobile purposes, into stationary energy storage is a great solution,” says Resendiz. “You’re extending the life of the battery by seven to ten years, which helps with sustainability initiatives because you want to use these batteries for as long as you can.”
It also helps with lithium security Lithium securityThe concept of ensuring a stable and sustainable supply of lithium, a crucial element used in batteries, particularly lithium-ion batteries commonly found in electric vehicles. The term emphasizes the need to manage and secure the availability of lithium to meet the increasing demand for battery production without depleting natural resources or causing environmental harm.Learn More , he says, and means you don’t need to mine for new materials to make new batteries, a resource-intensive process.
Those old batteries can then charge electric vehicles, taking some of the pressure off electrical grids in neighbourhoods where, for example, there are a lot of electric vehicles being charged. And they can serve as backup power when power is lost after a big storm, like a generator of sorts.
As electric vehicles surge in popularity, the strain on current infrastructure grows. This translates to costly upgrades for power transmission lines, especially in the remote expanses of North American highways. (Note: A power transmission line is the set of structures and cables used to move electrical energy from one point to another.)
As the popularity of electric vehicles rises, the need for transformer upgrades increases, adding pressure to residential loads and prompting adjustments to existing distribution grids. This evolution highlights the crucial necessity for transformer enhancements—devices that alter the voltage of electrical energy—to cope with the expanding influence of EVs on residential energy systems.
Positioned "behind-the-metre" (meaning the consumer controls their energy usage independently from the grid), Moment Energy systems manage peak demand, boost grid stability, encourage renewables, cut CO2 emissions, and back the expansion of EV charging stations.
“This also allows for renewable integration,” Resendiz says. “Solar and wind are great examples: they’re wonderful renewable energy sources, but they’re not available at all times, when the sun isn’t shining, or the wind isn’t blowing. With these repurposed EV batteries, you can store excess power when those renewable sources are readily available, so you have it when you need it.”
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