BeePlanet Factory is the most recent Spanish start-up to be accepted into InnoEnergy’s Highway program. InnoEnergy is now a shareholder of the company that gives a second life to automotive batteries and repurposes them for home and commercial use.

In 2030 the International Energy Agency forecasts expect there will be 125 million electric vehicles on the road. Each battery will have an average life of 10 years, then they will need to find a second life, that is where BeePlanet comes in.

BeePlanet is committed to the circular economy, they have already closed agreements with Nissan and are currently reusing batteries from Nissan Leaf models.

The start-up provides energy storage solutions by developing the proper application for each battery following its initial use in a passenger vehicle.

Although the batteries are no longer perfectly suited to the requirements of a motor vehicle, this need not relegate them to the scrap heap.  Instead, they can be put to such alternative uses as Large-scale energy storage to optimize the grid, Small-scale energy storage for self-consumption in public and private buildings and alternative vehicles with lower performance specifications, such as forklifts, golf carts, bicycles, etc.

The start-up is focused on spreading the word about the endless possibilities of reusing EV batteries to not only make the EV business case more profitable, but to reduce the levelized cost of energy storage at domestic and commercial installations. “We want to consolidate our stationary product line launching to the market two more products. The first one is based on the reutilization of the complete battery pack and the second is a rack solution, to cover a range of storage solutions from 17 kWh to over 200 kWh”, explains the CEO, Jon Asin.

“InnoEnergy’s role has been key since they joined this project, providing not only funding but also strategic contacts and a global vision for the complete energy storage value chain. Their support to the project has been a great help to consolidate BeePlanet brand as one of the market leaders for second-life batteries in Europe”, says Asin.

BeePlanet was recently recognised as the best start-up in the Environment and Energy area at the Expansion Awards, a renowned competition led by the Spanish newspaper.