COMSYS HELPS SAWMILL DOUBLE CAPACITY WITH INNOVATIVE SECOND LIFE BATTERY SOLUTION
LUND, SWEDEN; November 16, 2020 – The Swedish cleantech company Comsys AB announced today that it has successfully demonstrated the repurposing of used EV batteries for industrial peak shaving applications.
Recent trials of an onsite energy storage installation built by Comsys using swapped-out EV batteries has enabled a sawmill in Germany to increase production by 100% by making it possible to run a second saw without limitation. The objective of the project was to study this second-life battery application as an alternative to installing additional capacity from the grid, which is typically too costly, to supply the peaks of a highly variable load.
The test project is a response to the growing opportunity for the power sector resulting from rising global growth of electric vehicles – stationary storage powered by used EV batteries. This is a relatively new opportunity that, according to an article published by McKinsey & Company in April of 2019, “could exceed 200 gigawatt-hours by 2030.” Dan Liljengren, Head of Research and Innovation at Comsys, explains why the sawmill made a good choice for the trials.
“In applications like sawmills, the power is very volatile due to the significant difference between high load and low load, and the demand fluctuates as a natural part of the sawing process. For such applications, often situated in remote areas, a battery installation can supply the saws at high load demand to supplement the limited power available from the grid. At low load the battery is charged.”
The result of the pilot trials showed that the sawmill was able to utilize the power connection to the maximum and overcome a previous limitation of only using one of two big saws simultaneously, thus doubling production capacity. Liljengren says that Comsys’ solution, which is modular and fully scalable to fit the needs of various industries, offers several significant advantages.
“Not only does it allow the owner to sidestep large investments in grid infrastructure, but it also provides quick response, contributes to a circular economy and can save industries money by not having to pay for electricity at peak demand.”
Rickard Jacobson, CEO
rickard.jacobson@comsys.se
+46 704 99 99 34
Comsys AB, a cleantech company based in Lund Sweden, develops digital energy control methods and products to optimize and improve energy flow in a wide variety of applications and help customers to meet increasingly challenging demands set by standards and utility companies. Our technologies provide robust solutions for both grid operators and applications within industrial automation, building automation, data centers and the marine sector, to name just a few. They are also being increasingly used in electricity production and energy storage, primarily from solar and wind, in order to meet the constantly growing demands by grid operator owners around the world.
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