Waymo robotaxi batteries find second life in renewable energy power grids

Waymo, the self-driving car division of Google’s parent company Alphabet, has announced plans to repurpose old batteries from its robotaxi fleet to use them for renewable energy storage.

Thousands of degraded batteries from Waymo’s autonomous taxis will provide storage for power grids in California and Texas following a “strategic supply agreement” with US-based B2U Storage Solutions.

The partnership will see excess energy from wind and solar installations stored in the batteries, which can then be used to provide hundreds of megawatt-hours back to the local grid when needed.

“Our shared fleet of EVs provide a massive opportunity to support the growth of clean energy on the electricity grid while expanding the circular economy,” said Adam Lenz, head of sustainability and environment at Waymo.

“Through this partnership, we can repurpose our batteries for local grid storage and ensure our batteries continue to provide economic and environmental value to the community long after they’ve retired from the road.”

EV batteries typically last between 15 to 20 years before their capacity degrades to around 70-80 per cent, making their driving range no longer practical for a vehicle.

A so-called ‘second life’ is increasingly common for these batteries, as they still hold a massive amount of charge and can be used to store excess solar or wind energy for homes, buildings or grids.

This second-life stage can increase the batteries’ lifespans by up to a decade before they need to be recycled.

B2U’s facility in Lancaster, California, already uses more than 1,300 repurposed EV batteries, according to the company.

“This agreement marks a significant milestone in B2U’s mission to provide integrated repurposing services to the automotive industry,” said B2U CEO Freeman Hall.

“By extending the use of these batteries as grid storage, we are monetising the full potential of EV batteries, now providing crucial stability to the power grid as energy demand continues to grow.”