What do music festivals, constructions sites, film sets and next generation motorsport events have in common apart from operating at the mercy of the Great British weather? They all need temporary yet reliable power. For years the source of this power has been via diesel generators. Generators of all shapes and sizes from small motors chugging next to a chip van to large scale 10kVA generators, have been the mainstay of temporary power management.  

Additionally, the movement of people to and from live music events, which are often located in remote or countryside locations, adds another source of emissions. 

But it’s not just power and people these diesel generators and vehicles are bringing to a site or an event. They also emit carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides and other particulates into the air and are an additional source of noise pollution. They can be inefficient in how they burn diesel and are generally not responsive to variations in power requirements.   

With the UK festival community estimated to use in excess of 12 million litres of diesel every year there is a need for the sector to change and embrace carbon-free technology. That’s why this summer we’re joining in with the production of the biggest climate compatible live event of its kind that will set a precedent for low carbon innovation in the industry.    

From electric bus to portable power 

The end of life of an electric bus battery is generally accepted as the moment the battery can no longer discharge enough power to fulfil a route’s requirements.  

In 2019 we supported just nine vehicles, all based out of one depot. We knew that as the number of electric vehicles we support grew, so did our responsibility for the on-board batteries and what would happen to them at the end of their first, usable life. 

We now support over 1,200 vehicles across 75 depots globally. This support ranges from financing of brand-new electric vehicles and charging infrastructure through to delivery of electric depots and their ongoing operation and maintenance. It also includes a Battery Managed Service.  

This service mitigates battery technology risk for our customers. We do this by providing a battery guarantee, replacing batteries when they are no longer able to complete a route. When, in other words, the battery has come to end of its first life. However, we know that the battery is still packed with usable and valuable energy storage cells, enough to take on a second life elsewhere. This means we’re invested in the performance of the battery in its first life and ready to repurpose it into a second.  

We remove any unusable batteries from the bus and refurbish any that need attention, then they are repurposed into portable (or stationary) power units. One portable battery can store approximately 130kwh of energy. That’s enough on average to charge five electric cars*. By lengthening the life of the battery, this approach reduces the environmental impact of the battery supply chain and ensures their continued commercial value.  

The first test for portable power  

In 2021, Zenobē was appointed as the Official Energy Storage Supplier for the first season of off-road electric race series, Extreme E. Borne out of concern for the climate crisis, the series seeks to demonstrate the technologies available to power thrilling sports action without a detrimental impact on the environment. In a first real-world test for our portable power units, we supplied a fleet of second-life batteries to power the race’s paddock operations, garages and broadcast infrastructure.  

The compact nature and mobility of the units proved to be a perfect combination for a live event that regularly moves location. Our presence at Extreme E race events has since grown to an island of five mobile units and one mobile DC Powergrid. The units are now a key component of the temporary microgrid at each event, where they store DC power generated by a Hydrogen fuel cell for use across the race paddock.   

Working with Extreme E was the beginning of a wider strategy for Zenobē’s second-life batteries and how they can be used across different applications.  

Quiet on set! 

As well as providing a circular solution to EV battery waste and being a sustainable alternative to diesel generators, our portable second-life battery units also possess another extremely useful feature – they are silent when in operation. It’s this aspect along with their sustainable credentials that has made them an extremely attractive asset to the film and TV industry. In collaboration with E-Vis Energy, a clean energy solutions provider to the film, TV and events sector, our portable batteries have served on some of the largest productions in the industry.  

In 2023, while filming on location in the English countryside, we worked with the crew of Netflix’s The Crown to integrate a portable power unit into the production set to power lighting during filming. We’ve since received official accreditation as an albert approved supplier, the industry’s leading organisation for environmental sustainability.  

Powering festival transport 

For the past two years, Zenobē has partnered with National Express to run a zero emission shuttle service from Bristol to Glastonbury, one of the world’s biggest and best-known music festivals. In 2023, we provided eight fully electric double deck buses and set up a pop-up charging station enabling National Express to charge the vehicles close to where they are needed instead of travelling to a central bus depot. The set-up consisted of four fast DC chargers and a second life portable power unit for National Express to use for the duration of the festival, enabling each fully charged electric bus to travel up to 173 miles. The project demonstrated the viability of zero-emission festival transport and we’re pleased to be bringing the learnings from it to Massive Attack’s Climate Accelerator event (more on that below).  

‘Select-ing’ a new partner with a shared vision 

Now we know that our portable second life battery units can safely and reliably power everything from double deck buses to cameras and catering trailers, the greater the opportunity for them to be applied in different industries. Earlier this year we launched our partnership with Select to supply them with 20 of our second life portable power units.  

As a leading plant hire company, the partnership will enable Select and its customer to replace diesel generators with cleaner and quieter temporary power sources, without compromising on power.  

Powering Massive Attack’s Climate Accelerator event 

We are excited to bring our second life experience to Massive Attack’s ground breaking Act 1.5 Climate Accelerator event this August Bank Holiday Weekend. The event will demonstrate the technology that is available now to deliver a truly sustainable event that’s compatible with the 1.5 degree temperature change limited specified in the 2015 Paris Agreement.  

We’ll be providing 19 second-life battery units for the event, including five via our partnership with Select, to power lighting and catering facilities at the event. Our combined expertise in energy and equipment hire to deliver a power solutions package will set out a blueprint for sustainable events planning and management.  

Meanwhile, first life batteries on board Newport Bus’ vehicles will provide an electric shuttle bus service between local train stations and the venue, before and after the event. The batteries on board will be charged using Zenobē managed charging infrastructure in Newport Bus’ depot – who knows what gig, construction site or next Hollywood blockbuster hit these batteries will support in years to come.  

We’re excited to bring our experience in deploying electric vehicles and second life battery solutions to the sector and set a precedent for diesel and carbon free live shows.  

*Based on an average charge session of 20kwh