While Ford is coming in at the higher capacity end of the BESS sector, as a newcomer to this part of the energy sector, it is up against some stiff competition―as many established battery manufacturers are now starting to push into the 500+Ah space. It should be noted that even though they are above 500Ah, a lot of the ones in this range being pushed by manufacturers are at 587Ah or above. So, the cells are well above the current standard capacity but are still a little bit less than some of the 500+Ah systems being developed―as the 587Ah capacity level is seen as the ‘golden balance point’ because it offers a high capacity without necessarily making the BESS exceed the standard 45-ton weight limits for transportation.
So, how does Ford’s new BESS compare to the other 500+Ah systems? The rest of the article looks at how it compares to some of the other 500+Ah systems being developed by leading battery manufacturers. It should be noted, that for fairness, only the systems within a similar capacity range have been compared. There’s no point in comparing against 280Ah cell-based systems, nor is it worth comparing systems on the other extreme, for example, in the case of Hithium which is developing heavier but ultra-high capacity systems beyond 1000Ah.
