Ford Energy announces first customer for stationary energy storage

May 18, 2026 Updated Mon., May 18, 2026 at 9:17 p.m.

By Breana Noble Detroit News

Ford Motor Co.’s stationary battery energy storage business has announced a five-year framework agreement with its first customer: a developer of energy facilities.

EDF power solutions North America, a subsidiary of France’s EDF Group, will have the ability to procure up to 4 gigawatt hours of battery energy storage systems annually from Ford Energy starting in 2028. The business is a part of the Dearborn automaker’s ambitions of turning around its money-losing Model e electric vehicle division to profitability in 2029 and delivering consistent 8% adjusted operating profit margins within the company. A value for the agreement wasn’t disclosed.

“This agreement with EDF power solutions validates the market’s need for a BESS supplier,” Lisa Drake, president of Ford Energy, said in a statement, “that combines industrial-scale manufacturing discipline with full lifecycle accountability.”

The battery storage systems will come from one of the two battery plants at the BlueOval Battery Park in Glendale, Kentucky, that Ford is fully acquiring following the dissolution of its joint venture with Korean battery partner SK On Co. Ltd. Ford expects to deploy at least 20 gigawatt-hours annually from Kentucky 1 by late 2027.

Model e lost $777 million in the first three months of 2026, and Ford expects its losses will total between $4 billion and $4.5 billion for the whole year. The results mark improvements as Ford seeks to reduce costs from its currently available EVs.

The product EDF is acquiring is Ford Energy’s DC Block system for utility-scale applications. It’s a standardized, 20-foot containerized energy storage system with a rated capacity of 5.45 megawatt-hours per unit. The system utilizes 512 Ah lithium iron phosphate prismatic cells and is available in 2-hour and 4-hour discharge configurations, with an operating voltage range of 1,040 to 1,500 volts direct current and integrated liquid-cooled thermal management.

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.

Ford Energy announces first customer for stationary energy storage

Jesse Tinsley

Jim Meehan

Molly Quinn

Rob Curley

Musk's xAI accused of illegally firing engineer who raised safety concerns

SpaceX shares rise 18% in early trading during historic IPO

Fight over data centers is a once-in-a-generation grassroots movement