JLR BLESS Gives Second Life to EV Batteries

JLR and Allye Energy have fashioned a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) created from old Range Rover PHEV batteries. We’ve long pondered where old batteries go to die, but packs no longer suitable for cars make excellent home storage. In fact, it will power the average house for a month.

Each MAX BESS holds 7 used Range Rover and Range Rover Sport PHEV battery packs. Each pack is taken the SUV and inserted into the unit without any kind of modification. The MAX BLESS has a capacity of 270kWh and could charge up to nine Range Rover PHEVs at any one time. No special equipment is needed by the Range Rover.

The MAX BESS could replace diesel generator at remote events such as off-grid vehicle launches, events and vehicle tests in remote areas. A Diesel generator uses around 16L of fuel per hour, emitting 129.12kg of CO2 over 3 hour period. JLR’s Engineering team will use the BESS to power over 1000 hours of testing, saving more than 15,494kg of CO2 during the course of a year – equivalent to one passenger taking seven round-trip flights from London to New York.

ABOVE: JLR Second Life for EV Batteries

BESS weighs under 3.5 tonnes, so can be moved easily to make better use of solar power as well as being an energy buffer to support fast charging where local grids can’t cope. The unit will also be commercially available for use outside of JLR.

Battery value chains are expected to increase 30% per year between 2022 to 2030, to reach a value of more than $400 billion. Second-life battery supply for stationary applications should be more than 200 gigawatt-hours per year by 2030, with a global value over $30 billion.

The news doesn’t end with mobile storage, once battery “health” falls below 70-80%, JLR will recycle the raw material. Recycling has been the go-to point for EV critics as the bemoanof the lack of availability of end-of-life solutions for EV batteries.

François Dossa, Executive Director, Strategy and Sustainability at JLR, said: “Our Reimagine strategy is all about shifting our mindset to consider circular over linear business models. This battery innovation and partnership with Allye demonstrates the value we can create from repurposing and reusing batteries, such as from our Range Rover vehicles. We are creating new value from a used commodity that would otherwise go directly to recycling, keeping them in use for longer, and providing innovative renewable energy storage solutions.”

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