Ford unit signs five-year energy storage deal with EDF

May 18 (Reuters) - Ford ‌Motor's energy ​unit ​said on Monday it has signed a five-year deal to supply up ‌to 20 gigawatt-hours of storage capacity to ⁠renewable power developer EDF.

Under the deal, EDF can procure ‌up to 4 GWh ‌of DC Block battery energy storage systems (BESS) annually from the carmaker's unit, Ford Energy.

Ford Motor's ​shares were up about 3.6% in premarket trading.

Data centers are increasingly turning to backup ⁠power systems as a surge in electricity demand - driven by soaring ​use of artificial intelligence services - strains the energy infrastructure in the United States.

Automakers ​are also looking to ‌cash in on the boom by repurposing infrastructure built for electric-vehicle batteries ⁠to develop energy storage systems.

Following a $19.5-billion writedown on its electric vehicle programs last year, Ford announced it ⁠would launch an energy storage business, utilizing plant space ​in Kentucky that was previously meant to produce batteries for EVs.

Deliveries under the agreement with EDF are expected ‌to begin in 2028, the companies said on Monday.

EDF builds and operates ‌low-carbon energy production facilities as well as flexible ⁠power and electricity ‌transmission solutions in ​the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

(Reporting by Anshuman Tripathy in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy ‌Leo)

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