From used electric car batteries to energy storage: the new option Europe is considering

Old electric car batteries could get a second life, being used to store energy produced by the sun and wind. Even after they are no longer suitable for vehicles, they can serve as energy storage and feed the power grid when it is needed most.

This is seen as an opportunity for Europe, which is producing more and more energy from renewable sources.

In 2024 alone, around 10 terawatt-hours of renewable energy were lost in the European Union, with an estimated value of 4.3 billion euros.

In this situation, electric car batteries could play an important role. Even when they are no longer suitable for use in a vehicle, they can still retain around 70 to 80 percent of their original capacity.

In practice, batteries can be charged during the hours when more energy is produced, for example from solar panels, and then release the stored energy in the evening, when consumption rises.

Experts expect this option to become even more important in the future. The number of electric cars has grown significantly in Europe and, along with them, the number of batteries coming out of use is expected to increase.

According to the International Energy Agency, more than one million electric car batteries could reach the end of their life by 2030.

Instead of these batteries immediately becoming waste, they could be used for more years as energy storage. This would help harness the energy that is lost today and give Europe an additional way to cope with growing demand for energy.