The second life of energy

What if batteries didn't die but came back smarter? From repurposed cells to Al-powered insights and solar dreams that almost work, this is the untold story of how discarded energy is being reimagined and why the future runs on second chances

- PCQ Bureau

Back in 2019, two engineers decided to flip the battery game on its head. Armed with core engineering grit, a shared vision for energy circularity, and zero interest in short-term hacks, they founded Maxvolt Energy. Their early ambition? Build EV battery packs. But the road quickly evolved, moving beyond the vehicle, beyond lithium-as-a-commodity, and straight into the future of reused, repurposed, and recycled energy storage.

In a deep-dive conversation with Mukesh Gupta and Vishal Gupta, the co-founders laid out how their work is reshaping India's battery narrativefrom how a cell gets tested, to how it dies, and more importantly, how it lives again.

From packs to purpose: Building beyond EVs

The journey began with EV batteries, but as market needs evolved, so did the mission. The focus moved to building lithium-ion battery packs for wherever a battery could livefrom two-wheelers to solar energy storage to kids' toys.

The duo saw that the future wasn't just in manufacturing new packs, it was in creating an ecosystem where used ones don't go to waste. Today, Maxvolt's facility in Ghaziabad manufactures over 6,000 battery packs per month. And that number is set to double. A new six-acre facility is already in the works, with dedicated lines for recycling and second-life battery applications.

Circular thinking: not just a buzzword

The battery lifecycle is typically linear; use, degrade, discard. But here, the model is circular. Every single pack that comes back is first tested at pack level, then torn down to the cell level for further diagnosis. Cells that pass internal benchmarks are repurposed into new configurations for toys, pressure pumps, solar storage, camera backups, and more.