SoftBank to manufacture large-scale batteries for AI data centres

"SoftBank Group's mobile-services subsidiary will begin manufacturing large-scale battery cells at the Sakai, Osaka site that once belonged to Sharp, the company said on Sunday, targeting roughly one gigawatt-hour per year of output once the line is at scale. The plant supplies storage for the AI data centres SoftBank is already building, and for grid, industrial, and residential customers beyond that."

"Mass production begins in the fiscal year starting April 2026, in partnership with two South Korean firms: Cosmos Lab, which contributes zinc-halide cell chemistry, and DeltaX, which contributes systems integration. Zinc-halide manufacturing is targeted for 2027, with lithium-iron-phosphate and other chemistries supplying earlier volumes."

"The economic logic is the same one that drove the Sharp acquisition. AI data centres need large, fast-discharge storage to smooth power demand and survive grid events; the lithium-iron-phosphate and zinc-halide combinations SoftBank is building are well suited to that profile and avoid the rare-earth and cobalt supply chains that have come under Chinese export-control pressure."

"Zinc-halide in particular is non-flammable and uses widely available materials, which matters for data-centre fire-code approval and for siting batteries inside or near server halls. The Sakai conversion is one of the more concrete examples of Japanese industrial reuse: a high-volume display factory built for a category that lost out to OLED, now repurposed for the storage category AI has made urgent."

SoftBank Group’s mobile-services subsidiary will begin manufacturing large-scale battery cells at the Sakai, Osaka site formerly owned by Sharp, targeting roughly one gigawatt-hour per year once production reaches scale. The plant will supply storage for AI data centres already being built by SoftBank and for grid, industrial, and residential customers beyond those projects. Mass production is planned for the fiscal year starting April 2026. The effort is partnered with South Korea’s Cosmos Lab, providing zinc-halide cell chemistry, and DeltaX, providing systems integration. Zinc-halide manufacturing is targeted for 2027, while lithium-iron-phosphate and other chemistries will supply earlier volumes. The battery choices support fast discharge needs and reduce reliance on rare-earth and cobalt supply chains affected by Chinese export controls. Zinc-halide is non-flammable and uses widely available materials, supporting data-centre fire-code approvals and battery siting near server halls.

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