Honda and Mitsubishi to Reuse EV Batteries in Electric Grid

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. and Mitsubishi have decided to establish a new 50/50 joint venture (JV) company, ALTNA Co., Ltd. (ALTNA), in July 2024.

June 15, 2024. By Aishwarya

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. and Mitsubishi have decided to establish a new 50/50 joint venture (JV) company, ALTNA Co., Ltd. (ALTNA), in July 2024.

The new JV is based on the memorandum of understanding (MoU) the two companies signed in October 2023 to begin discussions toward the creation of new businesses in light of anticipated growth in the electric vehicle (EV) market toward a decarbonized future society.

The two companies decided to establish a joint venture company and work together to address challenges toward the societal implementation of EVs and the realization of a decarbonized society such as the following, optimization of the EV usage cost; enhancement of the lifetime value of batteries, which contain various limited resources, and improvement of resource circulation within Japan; and accommodation of the increasing demand for adjustment capacities through grid storage batteries toward an increase in the proportion of renewable energy in the energy mix in Japan.

By combining Honda control and connected technologies for EVs and batteries and MC power-generation know-how, which extends to the administration of storage-battery systems and smart-charging operations, ALTNA will strive to offer new mobility services that reduce the total cost of ownership for EV users and create new power-supply operations that enable long-term utilization of EV batteries.

Toshihiro Mibe, Director, President and Representative Executive Officer of Honda said, “With an eye toward the future popularization of EVs, Honda is working toward the establishment of a vertically-integrated EV value chain that includes all aspects of EV business, from the procurement of raw materials to the production of finished EVs, as well as the repurposing and recycling of EV batteries. We are very pleased to establish a new company with MC, which has deep knowledge of electric power business and shares our aspiration to realize a decarbonized society. Starting with N-VAN e:, we will take a proactive approach to establish a sustainable business foundation not only for the sales of EVs as mobility products, but also to create an optimal EV business environment including full utilization of batteries, which we believe will be critical for the popularization of EVs.”

Katsuya Nakanishi, Representative Director, President and CEO of MC commented, “We are pleased to be working with Honda, which boasts outstanding technological capabilities and is committed to the realization of resource circulation. With its business model to integrate mobility, energy, services and data, our new joint venture will take on challenges to introduce a new scheme that separates the ownership of the vehicle and battery of a single EV unit. Working toward the realization of a carbon-neutral society through societal implementation of EVs, we will leverage MC’s broad range of industrial contacts and business expertise and continue to work on the establishment of cross-industrial business models.”

Seiichi Fukui, Representative Director, President and CEO (to be) of ALTNA said, “ALTNA will be established with a mission to create solutions that maximize the lifetime value of limited resources and the efficiency of renewable energy utilization in order to enable people and the global environment to coexist for generations to come. Together with various partners, we will provide alternative options for a new future.”

Tags:

Sustainable Transport

Mitsubishi Power

Honda Motor

Electric Vehicle Industry

Electric vehicle charging

Electric vehicle adoption

Electric vehicles owners

Charging technology

Charging point operators

Charging infrastructure

Sustainable urban mobility