Inside Climate News: Retired EV Batteries Scored a New Gig: Bolstering Texas’ Grid

In the midday hours, prices plummet. An excess of energy produced across Texas, largely due to the state’s solar and wind fleet, signals it’s a good time to buy. It’s then that 500 batteries, which once fueled General Motors’ electric vehicles, charge up. The batteries, now in their second careers, are kept in staggered steel mesh containers, powered by electricity sent across miles and miles of transmission lines until it reaches a site just east of San Antonio. Then, as renewable energy production across the state dips as night rolls into morning and Texas begins to draw more energy from dispatchable fossil fuels, these retired EV batteries can sell power back to the state’s electric grid. Learn MORE