Sustainable and economical: First ICE plant gets innovative battery storage
Deutsche Bahn develops innovative energy concept for Leipzig long-distance transport depot • Battery storage consists of 30 used electric car battery modules • ICE depots play an important role in the group-wide S3 renovation program
Deutsche Bahn has equipped the Leipzig ICE depot, the first of its long-distance depots, with a so-called second-life battery storage system combined with a photovoltaic (PV) system. The innovative storage system consists of 30 used battery modules from a total of eight electric cars. The battery storage system and the PV system, which has an output of up to 250 kilowatts, can cover around a quarter of the ICE depot’s electricity needs. This saves DB around €85,000 annually in energy costs at the Leipzig site. Economical and innovative maintenance is a key component of DB’s S3 restructuring program. In order for DB’s railway companies to achieve their profitability targets, they must be able to reliably maintain and repair their trains at competitive rates.
Katrin Habenschaden, Head of Sustainability and Environment at Deutsche Bahn AG:
Deutsche Bahn will become climate-neutral by 2040. By modernizing the energy supply at the Leipzig ICE depot, we are demonstrating concretely how we combine sustainability and cost-effectiveness
“We store the solar-generated electricity in a battery storage system made from used electric car batteries and use it especially when energy demand at the depot is particularly high or the sun isn’t shining. In this way, we are not only further advancing the energy transition at DB, but are also making ourselves more economical as part of the Group’s S3 restructuring program.”
The PV system, with a total output of around 291 kilowatts peak (kWp), was installed on three building sections of the factory. The battery storage system communicates with the PV system and continuously monitors the factory’s power demand. If this demand increases, the storage system discharges, thus reducing so-called power peaks – those phases in which work in the factory requires a lot of power and which incur particularly high costs. Power peaks occur, for example, when trains are supplied with power from the public grid rather than the overhead line for testing purposes. A lot of energy is also required for turning wheelsets on the underfloor wheelset lathe (URD) to remove bumps or flat spots. When the battery storage system is fully charged and the PV system produces more power than can be consumed, the excess energy is fed into the public grid.
The Second Life battery storage system was developed by DB’s own startup encore | DB, which is part of the DB Bahnbau Group. The battery modules were used in electric cars for around five to seven years until they no longer had enough power for continued mobile use. However, they still offer sufficient capacity for use in battery storage systems. The individual modules are first tested for functionality and then reassembled. Second Life battery storage systems can store energy from solar, wind, or hydropower and, depending on their use, can be used for many years. As the plant’s power needs increase, the storage system can be expanded in the future.
Following the Leipzig long-distance transport depot, DB plans to equip the Kassel DB vehicle maintenance depot with a battery storage system as the next step. DB is also considering other deployments at its depots and facilities.
In the Group-wide S3 refurbishment program, maintenance plays a key role in ensuring the quality, reliability, and punctuality of trains. The ICE Leipzig depot primarily maintains and repairs ICE T and Intercity 2 trains. Around 275 employees, including 25 trainees, work at this location around the clock to ensure clean and operational vehicles for long-distance traffic.
Deutsche Bahn will be climate-neutral by 2040 and is already Germany’s largest user of green electricity. Since the beginning of 2025, all stations, maintenance depots, office buildings, and facilities in Germany supplied by DB Energie have been entirely powered by green electricity. The electricity used by DB to operate its traction power network already comes from around 70 percent renewable energy and will be completely converted to green electricity by 2038. DB long-distance passengers have been traveling within Germany with 100 percent green electricity since 2018.
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