Skip to main content

EVgo adds second-life batteries to fast-charging system

EVgo has added second-life BMW i3 batteries to its Union City fast-charging station in California to store energy during peak solar hours and reduce strain on the grid. This energy is then used to deliver a fast charge to EVgo customers’ electric vehicles during periods of high demand. The second-life battery system integrates two BMW i3 battery packs into a single housing. Evgo says each battery pack has a capacity of 22 kWh which combines with a 30 kW inverter to offer a 30 kW/44 kWh energy storag
July 18, 2018 Read time: 1 min
EVgo has added second-life BMW i3 batteries to its Union City fast-charging station in California to store energy during peak solar hours and reduce strain on the grid. This energy is then used to deliver a fast charge to EVgo customers’ electric vehicles during periods of high demand.


The second-life battery system integrates two BMW i3 battery packs into a single housing.

Evgo says each battery pack has a capacity of 22 kWh which combines with a 30 kW inverter to offer a 30 kW/44 kWh energy storage system.

Princeton Power Systems provided the inverter hardware and integrated it with the battery packs. Meanwhile, technology company Kisensum developed software controls for the battery system and managed software integration.

The EVgo Union City site began operating earlier this summer and currently has two 50 kW DC fast chargers.

Related Content

  • Saving the smartphone zombies from themselves
    October 15, 2020
    As roads – particularly in cities – become busier, companies are fielding a steady trickle of products to keep pedestrians safe and vehicles flowing
  • Jenoptik goes green at the roadside
    October 3, 2022
    Wind, solar and hydrogen power can be used to keep its temporary speed cameras going
  • Volvo Group studies potential to test electric roads in a city
    May 21, 2014
    The Volvo Group is now taking the next step in the development of sustainable transport solutions. In collaboration with the Swedish Transport Administration, the Volvo Group will study the potential for building electric roads, where city buses can be charged from electricity in the road at the same time as the bus is in operation. The benefit is quieter and more climate-smart public transport. A 300- to 500-metre electric road may be built for test operations in central Gothenburg during 2015. The tech
  • Managed lane free flow tolling system to keep El Paso moving
    March 1, 2013
    Two new managed toll lanes being built on nine miles of the César Chávez Border Highway Loop 375 in El Paso, Texas are expected to increase capacity and reduce traffic congestion in the area thanks to a managed lane free flow tolling system to be supplied by Schneider Electric. The company has been selected by the Camino Real Regional Mobility Authority (CRRMA) to provide tolling system integration and maintenance services on the two new managed lanes. In order to operate and support the additional toll la