BMW Group Malaysia and Universiti Malaya install solar-powered charging station using second-life EV batteries at UM campus

BMW Group Malaysia and Universiti Malaya (UM) have installed a solar-powered smartphone charging station running on second-life BMW EV batteries at the UM Central bus stop, marking the first real-world application of the RE:GENERATE x Universiti Malaya research initiative.

The station was engineered by Associate Professor Dr. Tan Chia Kwang and his team at the UM Power Energy Dedicated Advanced Centre (UMPEDAC), translating over two years of laboratory research into everyday use at a bus stop serving more than 3,000 users daily.

It is one of two applications to come out of the initiative. Lower-capacity battery packs power the campus station, while higher-capacity packs from the same programme are being prepared for deployment to Pos Sinderut, Kuala Lipis, Pahang, where they will provide off-grid electricity to a Semai Orang Asli community.

System and specifications

The station runs on a 1.5 kWh system built from three BMW battery modules, each around 10 years old. Testing, grading and modification by Dr. Tan's team recover 30-40% of the batteries' original capacity — these are the lower-capacity cells from the sorting process, with higher-capacity batteries reserved for the more demanding rural electrification project.

The setup combines the second-life batteries with second-life solar panels, a solar charge controller, a photovoltaic inverter, a Battery Management System (BMS) and a USB fast charger. It offers four charging ports — three USB-C and one Lightning — with a combined output of 200W and a maximum of 100W per port.

Data loggers track battery parameters and usage, with a trained group of students handling monitoring and maintenance, which mainly involves reviewing logger data and periodic visual checks. The system is designed to last at least five years, with lifespan projections based on the batteries' current condition, expected usage and depth of discharge.

A battery's three lives

The lower-capacity batteries used in this charging station are unlikely to see a third life given their degradation. However, the higher-capacity batteries — retaining up to 80% of their original capacity — will move on to the Pos Sinderut project, after which Dr. Tan's team plans to repurpose them once more into third-life charging stations, completing a full lifecycle from electric vehicle, to rural home, to public charger.