Waymo announced a partnership with energy storage company B2U to convert retired Robotaxi batteries into grid-connected energy storage devices, serving the power systems of California and Texas. This provides insight into how Waymo plans to handle the disposal of batteries after its large-scale fleet operation.

Covering the power grids of California and Texas

Waymo stated that the partnership will deploy "hundreds of megawatts" of energy storage capacity, but has not yet disclosed more specific project scale, commissioning time, or individual site arrangements.

For the power grid, reusing electric vehicle batteries can extend their lifespan without direct disposal, enabling them to be used in scenarios such as energy storage and regulation. For fleet operators, this also helps reduce the cost of disposing of retired batteries.

The current team is mainly composed of Jaguar I-Pace.

Currently, Waymo's Robotaxi fleet deployed in the United States consists almost entirely of Jaguar I-Pace electric vehicles. At the same time, the company has also begun small-scale deployment of van-type vehicles produced by the Chinese automaker JK.

As the fleet expands, the disposal of retired batteries has become a real issue in autonomous driving operations. This collaboration signifies Waymo's decision to prioritize exploring battery reuse rather than directly entering the recycling process.

The number of battery recycling companies continues to increase

B2U is one of a group of companies that focus on battery reuse rather than direct recycling. Similar models are attracting more industry players.

Redwood Materials, founded by former Tesla CTO Straubel, recently launched a "second lifecycle" energy storage business based on old electric vehicle batteries. Alphabet, the parent company of Waymo, is also one of the company's backers.