Zenobē to power UK construction sites with old bus batteries

London-headquartered battery storage and transport electrification company Zenobē Energy is repurposing 20 batteries from electric buses for UK construction company Select Plant Hire, a subsidiary of multinational engineering services firm Laing O’Rourke.

One battery unit can store approximately 150 kwh of energy and can also connect with the local grid to provide power across a variety of applications, including construction, lifting solutions and electric vehicle charging.

Zenobe’s website says it has 50 second-life battery units in operation currently. 

“Our portable batteries, made from refurbished electric bus batteries, provide Select Plant Hire with a ready and proven solution for their customers to decarbonize their projects. Our flexible funding and technical support provide the technological and sustainability benefits without the need of ownership,” Zenobē’s co-founder director, Steven Meersman, said. 

Commenting further on the deal, Meersman said the company was looking forward to seeing its batteries “becoming a regular sight, providing clean and reliable power to construction projects around the country.” They have already been used in the film, events, and logistics industries. 

Already 735 MW of grid-scale storage assets live or under contract

In addition to its second-life battery projects, Zenobē has approximately 735 MW of grid-scale storage assets live or under contract. The company, which was founded in 2017, has been making waves of late.  

Last week, it announced the completion of a £410 million ($ 524 million) finance deal to deploy more than 2,000 electric buses throughout the UK and Ireland by 2026. It claims it is the “number one owner and operator of e-buses in Australia and New Zealand.” In the UK, the business powers around 25% of the electric bus market. 

This latest deal follows Zenobē’s £147m fundraise announced in January 2024, integral to the delivery of the Kilmarnock South and Blackhillock grid-scale battery storage projects the company is developing in Scotland. To date, the company has raised more than £1 billion in debt financing.