EnerVenue, a California-based company, has announced the opening of a 1 million-square-foot gigafactory in Shelby County, Kentucky. The factory will manufacture ultra long-life metal-hydrogen stationary batteries, which EnerVenue calls “Energy Storage Vessels.” These batteries have a high energy density and long cycle life, and do not rely on toxic materials like lead or lithium.
Metal hydrogen batteries have been in use for decades by NASA, in everything from satellites to the International Space Station. They use metal hydrides as active materials for both the anode and cathode. Hydrogen gas is used as the electrolyte, allowing for reversible storage and release of energy. However, until now, they have been too expensive to scale.
EnerVenue chairman and Stanford University professor Yi Cui figured out how to adapt the materials and greatly reduce costs, making EnerVenue the first company to bring metal-hydrogen batteries capable of more than 30,000 cycles to market.
The Energy Storage Vessels can be mounted in racks, containers, or stacked in custom warehousing, and they don’t need preventative fire suppression. They reliably operate in a wide ambient temperature range without supplementary HVAC. EnerVenue offers a 20-year, 20,000-cycle warranty extension, at the end of which system owners are guaranteed at least 88% battery capacity.
The new Kentucky battery gigafactory will handle all design and process validation, manufacturing, and testing. The first phase of the project will encompass 1 gigawatt hour of annual production, with plans to expand to more than 20 gigawatt hours per year across its domestic manufacturing sites in subsequent phases. The factory is expected to create 450 full-time jobs during the initial opening and first phase of the production ramp and is scheduled to begin production by the end of 2023.
EnerVenue chose Kentucky because of the generous tax incentives it received from both Shelby County and the state itself. Researchers are exploring ways to improve the performance of metal hydrogen batteries for use in a wide range of applications, including EVs and renewable energy stationary battery storage systems. EnerVenue also has residential battery storage in development.
As demand for renewable energy storage increases, EnerVenue’s new gigafactory will help meet the needs of consumers looking for a reliable, long-lasting, and sustainable solution.
