Australian company Relectrify has been recognised globally for repurposing old EV batteries for household power.
It was the only Australian company recognised as one of the top 15 global start-ups by energy technology accelerator Free Electrons, a group linking utility companies with new energy tech businesses, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Relectrify, based in Cremorne, Victoria, evolved from the University of Melbourne’s research arm and competed against more than 500 companies from 65 countries in the program.
It repurposes EV batteries, allowing households to use them in a similar way to Tesla Powerwall batteries and could overcome issues related to EV batteries’ relatively short lifespans. co-founder Valentin Muenzel says.
“EV batteries come as a pack, so when they fail it’s usually a ‘weakest link’ scenario, where one small part stops working, causing the whole battery to fail.”
Although they cannot be reused in vehicles, they could be installed in homes and connected to solar panels to provide power during the night or to feed energy back into the grid during peak demand.
“Our technology allows batteries to use all their segments to their maximum life, giving an extra 2000 recharge cycles,” Muenzel says.
“So if this were to be used in a house this could provide another six to eight years in battery life.”
The batteries in electric cars today have the potential to power millions of households tomorrow, the company says.
Relectrify will participate in modules around the world, in Sydney and Melbourne, Silicon Valley, and Berlin, working closely with utility companies to commercialise its technology.
Visit www.relectrify.com for more information.
