Recycled Electric Vehicle (EV) Batteries to Power Data Centers' Surging Energy Needs, According to GM and Redwood Materials

In a significant move towards advancing America's energy independence, General Motors (GM) and Redwood Materials have announced a new partnership aimed at accelerating the deployment of energy storage systems. This collaboration combines GM's advanced battery technology with Redwood's recycling and system integration capabilities.

The focus of the partnership is on deploying energy storage systems to meet surging power demand from various applications, including AI data centers. GM will supply both newly manufactured battery packs and second-life batteries from used electric vehicle (EV) packs to Redwood for deployment in large-scale stationary battery energy storage systems (BESS).

Key contributions of this partnership include:

Utilization of New and Second-Life Batteries: GM provides new U.S.-manufactured batteries and repurposed EV batteries to Redwood. The latter are already powering a 12 MW/63 MWh microgrid project in Nevada—the largest second-life battery deployment in the world—demonstrating scalable, clean energy storage using recycled battery packs.
Scalable Energy Storage for Critical Electricity Needs: Redwood Energy, a new Redwood Materials business, focuses on rapidly deploying low-cost, fast-install energy storage systems. These systems support surging power demands, especially from AI data centers, which are expected to dramatically increase U.S. electricity consumption (projected to rise from 4.4% in 2023 to 12% by 2028).
Strengthening Energy Resilience and Domestic Supply Chain: The partnership promotes domestic manufacturing and recycling, reducing reliance on imported minerals and supporting U.S.-based clean energy manufacturing and energy independence. This helps build infrastructure that can quickly and economically respond to accelerating electricity demand driven by electrification across transportation, industry, and digital infrastructure.
Circular Economy and Emissions Reduction: By recycling and repurposing EV batteries into grid storage solutions, the collaboration supports a circular economy, reducing waste and emissions associated with raw material extraction and battery production.

This partnership is expected to be a significant step towards expanding GM's battery technology beyond electric vehicles. Energy storage forms a key building block for the clean energy transition, addressing the intermittent nature of renewable energy sources and ensuring round-the-clock energy demand is met without wasting energy, particularly as demand on the grid grows.

Redwood Materials, founded in 2017 by Tesla co-founder JB Straubel, collects, recycles, refines, and remanufactures battery materials, with a focus on creating a closed-loop domestic supply chain for batteries. Redwood Energy, a new business by Redwood Materials, deploys both used EV packs and new modules into fast, low-cost energy-storage systems built to meet surging power demand from AI data centers and other applications.

Kurt Kelty, VP of batteries, propulsion, and sustainability at GM, emphasizes the need for quick, economical, and domestically produced energy storage solutions to meet growing electricity demand. He reiterates that General Motors is not only focused on making better cars, but also on shaping the future of energy resilience.

[1] General Motors Press Release. (2023). General Motors and Redwood Materials Announce Partnership to Accelerate Deployment of Energy Storage Systems. Retrieved from https://www.gm.com/news/press-releases/2023/gm-and-redwood-materials-announce-partnership-to-accelerate-deployment-of-energy-storage-systems

[2] Redwood Materials Press Release. (2023). Redwood Materials Announces Partnership with General Motors to Accelerate Deployment of Energy Storage Systems. Retrieved from https://www.redwoodmaterials.com/press/redwood-materials-announces-partnership-with-general-motors-to-accelerate-deployment-of-energy-storage-systems

[3] U.S. Department of Energy. (2023). U.S. Electricity Demand Projections. Retrieved from https://www.energy.gov/eia/electricity/electricity-demand-projections

[4] Environmental Defense Fund. (2023). The Importance of Battery Recycling. Retrieved from https://www.edf.org/energy/importance-battery-recycling

[5] McKinsey & Company. (2023). The Future of Energy Storage. Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/energy-resources/our-insights/the-future-of-energy-storage

This partnership between General Motors and Redwood Materials, driven by science and technology advancements, aims to strengthen the transition towards energy independence by accelerating the deployment of energy storage systems, particularly for critical applications such as AI data centers.
By combining GM's innovative battery technology with Redwood's recycling and system integration capabilities, they aim to promote environmental-science in all stages of their energy storage systems, from manufacturing to recycling, providing domestic solutions that reduce reliance on imported minerals and emissions.
The collaboration between the two companies in the finance and industry sectors is expected to lead to significant strides in energy resilience and clean energy storage, addressing the intermittent nature of renewable energy sources and meeting round-the-clock energy demands without wasting energy.

Recycled Electric Vehicle (EV) Batteries to Power Data Centers' Surging Energy Needs, According to GM and Redwood Materials