Ford and GM in the US use EV battery capacity for energy storage systems
US automakers Ford and General Motors are using part of their underutilized electric vehicle battery production capacity in the energy storage systems business. The companies aim to capitalize on growing demand for such systems from data centers, energy infrastructure, and power grid operators, OilPrice reports.
Ford’s plans
At the end of 2025, Ford launched its energy storage systems division while revising its electric vehicle strategy. To develop this business, the company is repurposing its existing battery production facilities in Glendale, Kentucky.
The automaker said it intends to invest about $2 billion over the next two years. By the end of 2027, Ford plans to deploy at least 20 GWh of energy storage systems annually. They will be supplied by the new Ford Energy subsidiary to energy companies, data centers, and large industrial and commercial customers in the United States.
In May, Ford Energy entered into a five-year framework agreement with EDF power solutions North America. It provides for the possible purchase of up to 4 GWh of DC Block BESS systems per year, with the total potential volume over the full term of the agreement reaching up to 20 GWh.
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General Motors’ steps and market demand
General Motors has also launched an energy storage systems business and offers technologies for bidirectional electricity exchange between a vehicle and the grid. In June, the company announced a partnership with Peak Energy to develop and deploy grid-scale energy storage systems based on sodium-ion chemistry.
Before launching this division, GM provided repurposed second-life battery packs for Redwood Materials’ microgrid in Sparks, Nevada. According to GM, this facility is the largest microgrid in North America.
As OilPrice notes, Ford wrote off $19.5 billion, while GM’s total charges during the scaling back of its EV divisions amounted to $10.9 billion. At the same time, a record 20.2 GWh of new energy storage systems were installed in the United States in the second quarter of 2026, and 30.8 GWh in the first half of the year. According to the US Energy Information Administration, the country’s grid-scale energy storage capacity has grown by an average of 70% annually over the past three years.
