One of the big questions people ask is what will be done with all of the batteries after the end of an EV’s life. If EVs don’t last very long, and then all those batteries end up in junkyards, then we’ll have a major environmental problem on our hands, right?
Another thing we’re seeing is that batteries are too valuable to just throw away and create an environmental disaster with. When an EV gets totaled in a wreck, people jump at the opportunity to buy the battery pack, busted or not. The battery cells are useful for the repair of other EVs, upgrades for some older EVs, and reuse for all sorts of things, like EV conversions and stationary battery storage.
By the end of 2023, JLR plans to supply enough batteries to store a total of 7.5MWh of energy, which can power 750 homes for a day. In the future, additional containers can be created to accommodate more second-life batteries obtained from used production vehicles. Wykes Engineering and JLR have achieved seamless integration as part of their technical collaboration. No additional manufacturing steps or battery module removal is required. The batteries from the Jaguar I-PACE are easily transferred to on-site racks in containers, maximizing project sustainability.
Second-life battery supply for stationary applications, such as renewable energy storage, is projected to surpass 200 gigawatt-hours per year by 2030, resulting in a global value exceeding $30 billion. JLR’s batteries are meticulously engineered and can be repurposed for low-energy scenarios once they no longer meet the stringent requirements of electric vehicles, typically retaining a residual capacity of 70-80%.