Second act: the pioneers giving green tech a new spin

Forward-thinking leaders are giving old hardware a new life. They are turning yesterday's tech into tomorrow's power.

Reimagining Second-Life EV Batteries as Grid-Scale Storage

Tania Saxby joined Connected Energy (CE) in 2019. She was the only woman at the company then. CE is based in Norfolk, home to Lotus sports cars. The company reuses electric vehicle (EV) batteries to store energy. Saxby remembers the team was mostly ex-Lotus engineers who loved motor sports.

She felt welcome, but being a woman in that field was new. CE's main business is also quite new. They take "second-life" EV batteries. These batteries no longer have enough power for cars, but they can still store a lot of energy. CE combines them into large power packs.

These packs provide reliable electricity to places like data centers. The power comes from local sources like solar panels. They also help with energy trading. They buy extra power from the grid when it's cheap. Then they store it and sell it back when prices are higher.

This approach has clear benefits for the environment. It turns a potential waste problem, a used battery, into a key part of the growing renewable energy system.

Saxby is now head of sustainability. She makes sure CE's green claims are accurate. She quantifies the carbon savings from using second-life batteries instead of new ones. She also handles environmental impacts, health, and safety. She is starting a full life cycle assessment to ensure CE's products are truly sustainable.

She says this work is crucial. Companies selling sustainable products must prove their claims.

More renewable energy sources like solar and wind mean more need for energy storage. Also, more sectors are using electricity, especially transport. This means more batteries, Saxby notes. Even some mining operations are switching to EVs. Their trucks are huge, with tires as tall as a person.

More women now work at CE. Saxby believes this has created a more open office atmosphere and better teamwork. Outside the company, gender barriers are also falling. Saxby has spoken at universities since 2021. She has seen a big increase in women attending. She advises them to specialize in electrical engineering for job security.

When Saxby explains her work, people often ask if she is solving the problem of used EV batteries. She tells them, "Yeah, we are." They often respond, "Wow – that’s cool!"

Repurposing Wind Turbine Parts to Keep Energy Spinning

James Barry worked at Rolls-Royce for 25 years. He became head of marketing for civil aerospace. It was hard to imagine him leaving. Even harder to picture him joining a small startup with only four employees.

But James Barry saw Renewable Parts (RP) as a good opportunity. He became CEO in 2015. He liked the chance to build a business. He saw renewables as a young industry, full of opportunities because things were still developing. He also believed wind power had a strong future in Britain's energy mix. This has proven true.

Wind turbines have many parts. Barry lists some: thyristors, actuating rams, gearboxes, pumps, motors, and circuit boards. All these parts can be remanufactured when they wear out. This is RP's unique selling point. Like Connected Energy, RP focuses on circularity. Under Barry, the company has become a world leader in remaking used parts. This now makes up over 40% of RP's business and is growing.

RP opened a new hub in Houston, Texas, just for remanufacturing. Texas might seem an odd place for a green initiative. But if Texas were a country, it would rank fifth in installed wind capacity.

Barry admits that customers sometimes need convincing that repurposed parts are as good as new. But he points out three key advantages. First, cost. Remade parts are 30% to 40% cheaper than new ones.

Second, carbon. He says there's a huge sustainability argument in a world with limited resources. For every ton of steel not manufactured, about three tons of carbon are saved. Finally, there's innovation. By receiving many failed parts, RP can find design weaknesses. They can then improve the parts with modern technology, boosting performance.

Since Barry took over a decade ago, RP's workforce has grown to nearly 60 people. He enjoys managing the diverse team. He sees them as 60 families creating something worthwhile.

RP has a successful apprenticeship program. It takes 16-year-olds straight from school. Barry also speaks at universities. New recruits might not have much experience, but with the right attitude, they can achieve a lot.

Barry agrees with the UK government's idea that there's great potential for green jobs. He says there is huge potential in renewable energy for a fulfilling, long career.