Second-Life EV Batteries Drive Clean Energy at Fiumicino Airport
Nissan delivers clean energy at scale by providing a cutting-edge battery energy storage system to Aeroporti di Roma’s Fiumicino Airport, Italy’s busiest international hub. The Pioneer project, co-funded by EU Innovation Funds, supports ADR’s pledge to reach net-zero emissions by 2030 and demonstrates how second-life EV technology can provide clean, flexible power long after the vehicle is no longer in operation.
The 10 MWh battery energy storage utilises 84 second-life Nissan LEAF batteries, which together store 2.1 MWh. Loccioni's units within Enel’s energy storage platform are harmonised, ensuring seamless performance. Paired with a solar farm of 55,000 panels that will generate approximately 31 GWh of renewable electricity each year, the facility supplies reliable, clean energy to stabilise the airport grid.
Engineers have requalified Gen 3 30 kWh and Gen 4 40 kWh batteries from high-mileage vehicles and warranty returns to meet stringent safety and performance benchmarks, and Nissan forecasts over six to seven years of daily service before further recycling becomes necessary.
“This project not only demonstrates the long-term viability of repurposed EV batteries in demanding environments, but also underscores Nissan’s commitment to sustainable end-of-life battery management.
“Our team is involved in the technical integration of second-life batteries into the ESS, the simulation of battery lifespan, and providing warranties for their performance in the new system. Just as importantly, once the batteries reach the end of their useful life on this project, we take full responsibility for their recycling.”
Nissan’s previous ventures with Loccioni and Enel—including the Melilla ESS in Spain and the Nomadic LabAlliance Internal ESS—have already demonstrated the stability of second-life battery energy storage. El Khomri added, “We are turning potential waste into valuable energy assets. Our reuse strategy not only supports large-scale industrial projects, such as Aeroporti di Roma’s Fiumicino Airport, but also demonstrates potential applications in the home, for example, as a backup power source during power outages.
“As we continue to scale battery reuse and recycling, we are advancing our broader mission toward a cleaner, more energy-efficient future.”
"We are integrators of people, ideas, technologies,” – comments Enrico Loccioni, President and founder of Loccioni – “With Pioneer, we have built a bridge between two carbonisation and decarbonisation: energy and mobility. At the centre always remains quality, of people, of projects, of innovations, which is another way of saying sustainability."
