• The collaboration between the two companies highlights CEGASA Energía's industrial experience and IKERLAN's technological capacity to anticipate the demands of the energy market.

CEGASA Energía, a leading European company in energy storage solutions with more than 90 years of experience, takes another step forward in its strategy as a European benchmark in the development and manufacture of advanced batteries. This is thanks to its collaboration with the IKERLAN technology centre, which will enable CEGASA Energía to promote new capabilities in efficiency, cybersecurity and cloud connectivity for its energy systems.

Through this alliance, CEGASA Energía has drawn on the multi-technology capabilities of MONDRAGON's technology arm, bringing together teams specialising in Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Embedded Electronic Systems. A team of over 10 professionals is participating in the development of these advances. All this with the aim of transforming industrial batteries into intelligent systems capable of managing their consumption, integrating into industrial environments and adapting to future key regulatory requirements, such as those relating to sustainability and cybersecurity.

‘Not all solutions on the market incorporate cybersecurity from the design phase. This preventive approach, in line with European regulations for 2027, is clearly a distinguishing and advanced feature,’ says Miguel Encabo from the R&D team at CEGASA Energía. ‘The project, with a high degree of innovation, has been carried out in a timeframe that would have been unthinkable a few years ago, achieving a robust and reliable solution in just over a year. In this regard, CEGASA Energía products incorporating this technology are expected to be operational in the field by early 2026’.

Rubén del Cura, a researcher on IKERLAN's Internet of Things team, states that 'there is currently no commercial product on the market that integrates artificial intelligence (AI) models for battery energy management to this extent'. CEGASA Energía, in collaboration with IKERLAN, is anticipating future trends by developing an innovative solution that combines advanced electronics, AI, cybersecurity, and cloud computing. It is an innovative proposal that aligns with what the sector will demand in the coming years."

The collaboration between the two companies involves evolving towards an ecosystem of connected, remotely updatable batteries with the capacity to integrate new software modules according to user needs.

A technological leap based on ECS: batteries that think, adapt and integrate.

The project incorporates a significant development of ECS (Extended Control System), CEGASA Energía's proprietary technology uses as the intelligent core of its energy storage systems. The ECS acts as an extended control system that monitors and coordinates all battery subsystems (BMS, PCS, security and communications), enables Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity and communication with cloud platforms, and integrates energy management functions.

Through this collaboration, the ECS acquires new capabilities in terms of physical safety and digital security. Advanced sensors are being incorporated to detect gases that batteries may emit in critical conditions, with the aim of preventing fires or thermal failures. Research is also being conducted into the latest cooling, cell control and chemical composition technologies to enhance performance and reliability.  

This evolution enables CEGASA Energía to transition to a model of connected, upgradeable, and remotely manageable batteries that are ready to operate in complex industrial environments and meet future regulatory requirements.

In terms of sustainability, these improvements maximise self-consumption, reduce dependence on the grid, and pave the way for new, demanding applications such as maritime transport and large-scale storage. Furthermore, both entities are working on a battery passport in line with future European legislation, which will record the life cycle of each battery and facilitate its reuse in a second life.

Thanks to its collaboration with IKERLAN, a leading energy storage company, ECS technology has been enhanced to equip batteries with real-time monitoring and continuous optimisation capabilities. These capabilities are already being validated in a pilot project combining a laboratory installation and a real-world installation with photovoltaic energy. In the medium term, ECS is expected to run predictive artificial intelligence models to maximise the useful life and energy performance of each unit, accelerating the development of more efficient energy strategies.
 

A commitment from the Basque Country to production in Europe to transform industrial batteries into smart systems through advanced electronics and cloud computing.