Dive Brief:
-
LG Chem has introduced a new generation of battery, offering the Australian energy storage market low (48 volt) and high (400 volt) versions of its lithium-ion battery systems, according to media reports.
-
The low-voltage battery systems are being offered in 3.3-kWh, 6.5-kWh and 9.9-kWh configurations. The high voltage systems are being offered as either in 7-kWh or 9.8-kWh versions.
-
LG Chem plans to offer the new battery storage systems globally, but they will be launched in Australia first.
Dive Insight:
Australia is being viewed as a proving ground for energy storage, particularly solar + storage applications. Rooftop solar penetration in Australia is among the highest in the world, but solar feed-in tariffs are being phased out in states with some of the highest levels of solar power penetration, like New South Wales and Victoria.
In a recent report, Morgan Stanley argued that those factors are creating fertile ground for the solar + storage market.
Changhwan Choi, Australian business development manager at LG Chem, told Renew Economy that there is a massive opportunity in the Australian market, particularly with the ending of the feed-in tariffs in some states at year end.
He said that the modular design of LG Chem’s new batteries gives consumers more flexibility to expand their storage system if they decide to increase the size of their solar system.
The high and low voltage versions of the battery systems also allows installers to better tailor a system to a user’s needs. Choi said introducing the low and high-volt versions of the batteries was done to meet consumers’ needs, but was driven by inverter manufacturers and suppliers looking to optimize the efficiency of their systems and reduce costs. He said that the low-volt batteries will cost less but have higher system integration costs, but the opposite will be true for the high voltage batteries.
LG Chem entered the Australian energy market in July 2015 and, supported by its main distributors, Solar Juice and Supply Partners, has supplied 600 units and expects to see a five-fold increase in 2016. When feed-in-tariffs come to an end in 2017, the company expects to see even greater growth.
“This could be a critical decade for Australia. There is a massive sustainability potential that is yet to be fully tapped”, Choi said in a statement.