Electric car batteries feature in Japanese solar powered street lights trial

Nissan trialing solar powered street lamps using old EV batteries.

A Japanese trial is breathing new life into old electric vehicle (EV) batteries by using them in solar powered street lights.

Nissan has teamed with 4R Energy Corporation in a pilot program recycling old EV batteries in solar street lights.

Lamps running on solar power could be used globally if the project succeeds. Because they work off-grid, they are ideal for use in natural disaster zones.

The first lamp in the Reborn Light project is being tested this month in Namie, a Japanese town was badly affected by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.

Namie was totally evacuated after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor meltdown that followed. Residents were only allowed to return in 2017.

Solar powered street lights first step in EV battery journey

If all goes well in the Fukushima trial, a major roll-out of battery charged street lamps is set for 2018.

Stylish solar powered street lights are being run by old EV batteries in Japanese trial.
Nissan is repurposing old EV batteries to run solar powered street lights in a Fukushima Prefecture trial. Image: Nissan

Nissan claims the street lamps could light up parts of the world which have never before been illuminated. With 17 per cent of the world’s population living without electricity, re-purposed EV batteries could have a major impact on people’s lives.

Meanwhile, the company has ambitious plans for used Nissan Leaf batteries beyond street lighting. According to the company, they could:

  • Generate electricity for households and companies.
  • Break people’s reliance on power plants.
  • Create portable booths for mobile phone charging.

They could even be used to light in parks by storing the kinetic energy of children playing on swings and slides. This battery-stored energy could light the parks at night.

Future of repurposed EV batteries in Australia and Europe

Another use for used EV batteries is powering behind-the-meter home solar battery storage. As more people seek solar quotes, battery uptake is also increasing along with the realisation that solar and batteries are a game changer for energy independence.

As a result, Melbourne startup Relectrify is developing technology using a $750,000 equity investment from the Clean Energy Innovation Fund.

Recycled batteries will be used in 12V batteries, also home battery systems and grid-scale storage.

In Europe, meanwhile, the BMW battery storage farm in the German town of Leipzig uses around 700 used EV battery packs from BMW i3s to provide storage for wind energy generation.

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