Nissan, Green Charge to use old car batteries for energy storage

Nissan Motor (TYO:7201) and US commercial energy storage specialist Green Charge Networks are bringing to the US and international markets a storage solution using second-life lithium-ion car batteries.

The Japanese carmaker has carried out multiple research projects at home, in the US and in Europe to use batteries from the Nissan LEAF for other applications. With the latest partnership, these second-life batteries will be integrated into a new version of the Green Charge energy storage unit, the companies said Monday.

Engineering teams from Nissan and Green Charge have worked for more than a year to ensure safety, reliability and performance of the product for commercial customers. The first such combined energy storage unit, using multiple Nissan LEAF batteries, will be deployed at a Nissan facility this summer to offset peak electricity demand.

Systems of that kind can also be used in combination with solar, wind and other renewable power plants to further reduce their environmental footprint and boost energy savings, Nissan noted.

The Nissan LEAF vehicle has booked over 178,000 sales since its launch in late 2010. “Nissan expects to be able to reuse a majority of LEAF battery packs in non-automotive applications,” said Brad Smith, head of Nissan’s 4R Energy business in the US.

4R Energy is a joint venture between Nissan and Sumitomo Corp (TYO:8316) set up in 2010 to address the secondary use of electric vehicle lithium-ion batteries.

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