Alfen, MonBat, Z-Institute, Dallas, Behr Hella.

Mega storage with BMW batteries: Dutch Alfen together with Vattenfall subsidiary Nuon has set up a 3MW energy storage system close to a windpark using BMW batteries. The system will be expanded to 12 megawatt eventually, making it the largest storage project in the Netherlands.
alfen.com

Bulgarians buy battery business in Germany, where Sofia-based MonBat has acquired Gaia Akkumulatorenwerke and EAS Germany. Both manufacture Li-ion batteries and cells and MonBat hopes to upscale production and accelerate development. As both firms are in Nordhausen, they have now been merged into EAS Batteries and MonBat plans to invest over 5m euros over the next two years.
seenews.com

Direct e-bike drive: Swiss Z-Institute reached 115 percent of its funding goal as they pitched a retro-fit pedelec system to the crowd. Fitted to the bottom bracket and weighing only 2 kilos including the battery, Bimoz promises direct pedal-assist and easy application. With development concluded, production has yet to start.
youtube.com via emobilserver.de (in German)

Cheaper EV batteries? The University of Texas at Dallas and Seoul National University found a novel material based on manganese and sodium-ion that could lower cost of batteries for electric cars. Sodium is cheaper than lithium while the manganese is used instead of the rarer elements cobalt and nickel.
utdallas.edu

More e-compressors: German Behr Hella Service will expand its portfolio by partnering with Japanese compressor specialist Sanden. Behr Hella Service will exclusively sell Sanden e-compressors for hybrid and electric vehicles in Europe.
behrhellaservice.com