Itochu and BYD team up to find second life for EV batteries

Japanese trader and Chinese automaker to sell storage for renewables

20191025 BYD, ITOCHU, Battery

Itochu and BYD think they have found a way to reuse electric car batteries, which are about to pile up. (Source photos from Reuters)

KENTA ANDO, Nikkei staff writer

TOKYO -- Japanese trading house Itochu will partner with BYD, China's leading producer of electric cars, on a venture that gives automotive batteries new life as storage for renewable energy.

The move comes as the number of used auto batteries is expected to surge worldwide, alongside the rise of electric vehicles. This has raised the question of what to do with so many old lithium ion cells -- a question the new business aims to answer.

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