Briefs: Transformers, eVTOLs, Digital Twins, and Energy Storage

Companies are partnering and expanding facilities to advance power transformers, electric aircraft, and energy storage systems. Hitachi Energy is constructing a new facility for power transformers, while Joby Aviation and Toyota have formed a new company to manufacture electric takeoff-and-landing aircraft.

Cornext and Plexigrid have joined forces to build a grid intelligence platform, and Moment Energy is building a massive plant to repurpose used electric vehicle batteries for battery energy storage systems.

Electric aircraft, power transformers, and battery repurposing. 

Hitachi Constructing Largest Power Transformer Factory in U.S.

Hitachi Energy has begun construction on the largest assembly site for power grid transformers. The $457 million expansion of its industrial campus in Virginia will include the manufacture of transformers ranging from 100 MVA to 500 MVA that can handle transmission voltages of 115 kV, 230 kV, and 500 kV.

The transformers are intended for heavy industrial grids, utility substations, and hyperscale data center campuses. Virginia has more data centers than any other state.

The development is part of the company’s $1 billion capital plan to boost domestic grid infrastructure production. The redesigned campus will total 300,000 square feet and nearly double the facility’s personnel by adding 825 new workers.

Rendering of the new campus. Image used courtesy of Hitachi Energy

Joby Aviation Teams Up with Toyota to Manufacture eVTOL Aircraft

Joby Aviation and Toyota Motor Corporation have established a joint venture to develop and manufacture electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The venture—Toyota Joby Aviation Aero Manufacturing Preparation Company—will build the infrastructure for commercial-scale aviation production.

The new company will first focus on maximizing plant throughput, improving manufacturing precision, and reducing individual manufacturing expenses. Under this setup, Toyota manufacturing engineers will work alongside Joby's teams in California to apply automotive manufacturing processes to the aerospace assembly line.

The Joby Aviation S4. Image used courtesy of Toyota

The partnership’s ultimate goal is to produce four aircraft per month, providing the manufacturing volume needed to support upcoming aircraft certification and meet projected commercial flight demand.

The company is owned 51% by Toyota and 49% by Joby. This setup builds upon a long-term relationship, including a prior $500 million investment from Toyota.

Corinex and Plexigrid Partner on Grid Digital Twin Platform

Corniex Corporation and Plexigrid S.L. will collaborate to market Corinex Plexigrid Intelligence, a platform designed to enhance visibility and control across low-voltage and medium-voltage electricity distribution grids. This solution uses advanced digital twins and physical network data to help utility operators manage the demands of modern electrification and distributed energy resources.

The system uses Corinex’s Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) technology to provide fast, detailed monitoring across equipment such as meters and transformers. A Grid Intelligence Node expands the number of network measurement points on low-voltage lines to capture precise data on power quality, voltage, and emerging constraints.

Plexigrid’s digital twin. Image used courtesy of Plexigrid

Plexigrid will contribute a Bayesian artificial intelligence that can reconstruct grid topology from geographical information systems and advanced metering infrastructure. Substituting typical Power Line Communication smart-meter data with this BPL-enabled system changes the data time resolution from 5-60 minutes down to 1 minute, while increasing estimation accuracy from 90-95% to 99%. Operational uncertainty drops to 1% and safety margins shrink to 2-5%.

World’s Largest EV Battery Repurposing Facility Opens in Vancouver

Moment Energy in British Columbia has completed construction of the world’s largest dedicated electric-vehicle battery-repurposing plant. Located near Vancouver, the 100,000-square-foot facility can process up to 40,000 electric vehicle batteries annually. This will create about 1 GWh of energy storage capacity per year.

The plant uses Moment Energy’s proprietary battery management system, Flora, to integrate the reused EV lithium-ion battery packs into energy storage systems. The factory workflow uses high-capacity automated material handling and automated testing to assess pack degradation. The rebuilding area reinforces and assembles them.

Take a look at Moment Energy's battery repurposing process. Video used courtesy of Moment Energy

The facility addresses the growing supply of retired EV batteries, which often end up in landfills. It also helps provide low-cost battery storage options to support power grids and industrial applications.

The construction was completed six weeks after the project’s initial announcement.