Data centers increasingly serve a pivotal role in the global economy, driving artificial intelligence (AI) systems, cloud transactions, and e-purchases. Historically lead‑acid, and more recently, lithium‑ion batteries have supplied backup power, but safety, sustainability, longevity, and high-power performance progressively place zinc batteries as the preferred solution for uninterruptible power supply.
With the recent announcement that zinc battery manufacturer Eos Energy Enterprises will partner with Google to support powering its project in West Virginia, zinc batteries have reached a tipping point in the data center sector.
COMMENTARY
The need for more energy storage options is clear. A February 2026 report from McKinsey & Company forecast that battery demand will reach 720 GW by 2025, with the largest growth coming from data centers, and according to a 2025 report from Deloitte, global electricity consumption for data centers will increase by 250% over the next decade. With this accelerating demand for energy storage, McKinsey & Company is correct in pointing to the need for a range of battery chemistries and has included nickel-zinc and zinc-air batteries in its forecast mix.
As data centers grow more mission-critical to the economy, so does protecting them from risk. Lithium‑ion presents an unacceptable threat of thermal‑runaway leading to devastating fires; in contrast, zinc batteries use water‑based electrolytes and inherently non‑flammable chemistries. For data centers, where a single incident can cause catastrophic downtime, zinc batteries’ safety profile proves transformative.
In addition to safety, policymakers and consumers increasingly demand sustainability bona fides. Zinc batteries are non-toxic and have 25–50% lower lifetime greenhouse gas emissions than lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries, making zinc batteries the most environmentally friendly choice. In addition, zinc’s recyclability and secure global supply chain offer compelling advantages for widespread technology adoption.
Zinc batteries also provide the high power density required to meet the peak demands of data centers. In particular, nickel‑zinc batteries deliver exceptionally high power density and rapid discharge capability. New AI data center workloads require continuous active power support for the dynamic power profile of large language models that have extreme power swings within a matter of milliseconds, which is a difficult and demanding load profile for traditional batteries.
ZincFive, GP Energy Tech, and Gerchamp already are mass manufacturing nickel-zinc batteries to meet data center demand, while AEsir Technologies and Enzinc are in the process of scaling up their nickel-zinc production both for data center and mobility applications. The high-power density profile of zinc batteries is accompanied by low cost and long battery life across a wide variety of temperature ranges. Zinc-manganese battery producer Urban Electric Partners as well as AEsir have demonstrated that deeply discharging their batteries does not compromise their longevity, and this enhanced service life coupled with reduced maintenance due to nonflammability results in lower lifetime costs.
Zinc batteries have transformed quickly from niche to norm, with manufacturers globally deploying backup energy storage systems for data centers. In the case of Enzinc and Urban Electric Power, the zinc batteries are configured to easily replace lithium-ion or lead-acid batteries, enabling data centers to adopt zinc technology without redesigning their energy storage space.
In addition to the many benefits—safety, sustainability, power, and longevity—of zinc batteries, accelerating demand for data centers is fueling the growth of alternative energy storage systems. To meet these energy needs will require utilizing a wide variety of battery chemistries. Given zinc’s unique performance and sustainability advantages, zinc batteries are poised to redefine uninterruptible power across the data‑center industry.
—Dr. Josef Daniel-Ivad is founder and CEO of jdi Energy Consulting, and leads the Zinc Battery Initiative.
