Premium

Second life firm Element Energy using recalled LG batteries, says source

LinkedIn
Twitter
Reddit
Facebook
Email

Element Energy’s large stock of batteries for second life energy storage are mostly LG batteries recalled from EVs in the last few years due to fire safety concerns, a source told Energy-Storage.news.

California-based Element Energy did not deny the claim when asked for a response. A spokesperson for the firm said: “The sources of the batteries that Element Energy will start deploying this year is not information that we have or will share publicly. Element’s adaptive BMS (battery management system) is for every battery.”

Element Energy revealed in December 2022 it had secured 2.5GWh of battery modules to deploy into second life energy storage solutions. Second life energy storage means the repurposing of EV batteries into stationary energy storage systems (ESS) once they are no longer suitable for use in an EV.

That procurement, along with targeted 100-400MWh project sizes this year onwards, meant Element was claiming to have scaled far beyond what any other second life energy storage company has done. The 2.5GWh figure even goes beyond what Mercedes-Benz Energy CEO Gordon Gassmann implied the major automotive OEM’s second life-focused subsidiary has to work with.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Enjoy 12 months of exclusive analysis

Not ready to commit yet?
  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Annual digital subscription to the PV Tech Power journal
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Energy-Storage.news’ source, speaking anonymously, said that Element Energy has been able to do this by using batteries from LG which had to be recalled over 2020, 2021 and 2022. The South Korea-headquartered firm had to recall hundreds of thousands of its battery packs from EVs and home energy storage during the period due to fire safety concerns.

A big chunk of the LG batteries involved in recalls were in Chevrolet Bolts and Hyundai vehicles. LG Chem had to pay US$1.9 billion to Chevrolet owner General Motors alone as a result.

Our source added that the provenance of Element’s second life batteries is why the company is keen to emphasise the benefits of its proprietary BMS.

CEO Tony Stratakos discussed its BMS at length in an interview on this site shortly after the procurement was announced and, as alluded to in the company’s response, the BMS is a decade in the making and is claimed to have benefits that go far beyond fire safety.

Stratakos wouldn’t give any details on where the batteries came from at the time and said that Element Energy wasn’t even focused on the second life energy storage space until recently.

The firm has offices in Menlo Park, California, and in South Korea.

Read Next

August 20, 2025
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin recently held a press conference in Hauppauge, New York, to address the concerns of battery energy storage system (BESS) installations with Long Islanders.
Sponsored
August 20, 2025
Commercial and industrial (C&I) energy storage can significantly lower electricity costs, increase efficiency, and aid decarbonisation, but customers’ safety concerns must be addressed.
Premium
August 19, 2025
After imposing a moratorium on the development of new battery storage projects in January 2024, officials in Solano County, California, have adopted new zoning standards for the technology.
August 19, 2025
Energy storage system safety is being taken to new levels, as evidenced by the fire testing efforts of Chinese market players, writes Carrie Xiao.
August 15, 2025
Drew Bandhauer of Leeward Renewable Energy examines how changes in lithium-ion battery chemistries help manage fire safety risk and how industry standards are evolving in step with technological advances.

Most Popular

Email Newsletter