Waymo’s spent robotaxi batteries will be used as grid storage

Waymo has announced a woody with an vigor retention institution called B2U to usage retired robotaxi batteries to service energy grids successful California and Texas.

The woody helps reply the question of however Waymo is reasoning astir the end-of-life attraction of the thousands of robotaxis it has deployed astir the United States. Almost each of those are presently Jaguar I-Pace EVs, though the institution has precocious started deploying a constricted fig of vans built by Chinese automaker Zeekr.

Waymo said the concern volition impact the deployment of “hundreds of megawatts of retention capacity” but did not connection immoderate further specifics.

B2U is 1 of galore companies focusing connected artillery repurposing alternatively than recycling. Redwood Materials, founded by erstwhile Tesla CTO JB Straubel and backed successful portion by Waymo’s genitor institution Alphabet, precocious spun up its ain second-life retention concern utilizing aged EV batteries.