How Moment Energy is Repurposing EV Batteries for Grid Storage

Demand for energy storage is surging worldwide, with capacity expected to grow eightfold over the next decade as extreme weather events increase blackouts and data centers expand their power needs.

Surging Battery Storage Demand Meets Retired EV Supplies

Producing new batteries requires mining and processing intensive resources, and recycling remains an expensive process concentrated largely in China, requiring North American materials to be shipped back across the ocean. When an electric vehicle reaches the end of its useful life, however, as much as 80% of its battery capacity remains intact.

Vancouver Startup Routes Used Cells Into Grid Systems

Four mechatronics engineering graduates who built and raced electric cars together founded Moment Energy in 2019 after experiencing a major power outage during Ottawa tornadoes in 2018. The company screens incoming used battery packs from around 20 automakers including Nissan and Mercedes-Benz, plugging cell metrics into proprietary artificial intelligence models to quantify remaining life before recycling non-viable units and linking the rest into 20- or 40-foot steel containers designed to extend usability by 10 to 30 years.

Tariffs and Safety Certifications Shape North American Expansion

Ongoing trade disputes between the United States and China have benefited the company by exposing imported batteries to steep tariffs, while Moment prepares to categorize its repurposed units as domestic products in both Canada and the United States. The startup also claims to be the only second-life battery enterprise to secure key safety certifications from independent evaluator UL, providing financiers and insurers with the validation required to evaluate storage investments securely.

Megafactory Production Faces Cheap New Imports

Moment opened its Megafactory 1 in Vancouver in June with a target of repurposing one gigawatt-hour of battery capacity annually by 2030, following a six-week setup period funded partly by capital from the US Department of Energy and a $100 million total raise from investors including Amazon and Liberty Mutual. The company is completing an additional facility in Texas, though both locations will still process only a fraction of retiring North American vehicle batteries while facing competition from cheap new batteries imported from China that reached average costs of $70 per kilowatt-hour in early 2026 against Moment systems priced under $90 per kilowatt-hour.