Pilot projects for Panasonic battery technology

Panasonic Australia has announced pilot projects with ActewAGL, Snowy Hydro’s Red Energy and Ergon Energy to install its new battery technology in solar-installed homes for the first time. Storage batteries have the capability to allow more solar energy to be used, with Panasonic modelling showing that the system could increase the self-consumption rate of solar generation from 30% up to 60%.

Panasonic’s LJ-SK84A Residential Storage Battery System comes in three parts: LJ-SK84A Li-ion Storage Battery System, LJ-NA02 Network Adapter and DR-EMS Platform Software. Designed and engineered for Australian conditions, the residential battery technology stores excess electricity generated by solar panels during the day for later use during peak periods.

Once fully charged, the lithium-ion storage battery produces a 2 kW output for four hours. It will also provide emergency power for critical appliances - such as the fridge or lighting - in case of sudden grid supply interruptions. With the product’s Demand Response Platform Software, retailers can dispatch its charge/discharge programs to help address pressures and network inefficiencies across Australia’s distributed energy network.

“Panasonic’s battery demand response system will help distributors model peak shaving effects, realised through solar and battery storage systems, and provide a cost-effective alternative to grid infrastructure investments,” said Panasonic Australia Managing Director Paul Reid.

“For consumers, it means access to clean solar energy during the evening peak and potentially a lower energy bill. For the retailer, we can provide a levelling out of costs and potential competitive advantage with customers.”

Panasonic’s new pilot projects will be implemented in a selected zone of customers with solar-installed households in the ACT, NSW and Queensland. Reid described the pilot projects as “a first for Panasonic in Australia”.

ActewAGL will trial the battery storage technology in Canberra homes during the second half of 2015, while Snowy Hydro’s retail business Red Energy will offer its trial to current Red Energy customers. Finally, Ergon Energy will test the battery product at its research laboratory in Cairns, followed by field tests in residential homes.

Panasonic will display the Residential Storage Battery System at the Australian Energy Storage Conference and Exhibition, taking place at the Australian Technology Park in Sydney from 3-4 June 2015. The product will be commercially available from October 2015.