Energy Watch Blog

Okay, I have your attention, but I am not going to try to sell you anything … and in fact, I am going to advise you not to buy … at least not yet … But I have exciting news about prices.

For the last couple of years the Solar Industry has been hyping the adding Batteries to Grid-Connected Solar Power Systems as the next big thing …

The reasons are obvious – while the sun is shining and a Solar Power System is generating power, the majority of households in use very little power because Mum and Dad are at work and the Kids are at school. Power is really needed in the evening for cooking, heating/cooling, lights, television, etc …

Batteries allow the capturing of solar energy at lunchtime for use at dinnertime.

Previously State Governments created incentives to Go Solar by mandating generous subsidized Feed-in Tariffs Schemes under which households sold power back to their Electricity Retailer during the day for at least the price they could buy it for, earning Credit that could be used to buy power in the evening. But the current feed-in rate in Victoria is now only 6c/kWh with no guarantee into the future that there will be any mandated minimum feed-in tariff at all …

So while the technology already exists to deliver the solutions Grid-Connected Battery Storage, the price of the Batteries has made the Value Proposition (despite what some players in the Industry might tell you !!!) economically unexciting – breakeven over the life of the equipment at best and not something that will save you money …

But that is all about to change …

Many people are aware of the Tesla Electric Car Corporation in the USA. Tesla knows that the key to popularizing their Electric Car is getting the price of Batteries down. In 2014, Tesla announced their huge new GigaFactory for Batteries designed to reduce prices by increasing production volumes. The other obvious market to grow demand for Batteries is Grid-Connected Solar Power. And now in May 2015, Tesla has announced their Grid-Connected Battery Storage solution - The PowerWall.

Tesla is so good at Razzle-Dazzle Marketing that many media reports seem to suggest that Tesla invented of Grid-Connected Battery Storage with Solar. They didn’t. But what they have done is release the PowerWall into the US Market at an Unbelievable Crazy Low Price – less than the half price of competing solutions. For me, this is the long-predicted beginning of fierce competition between manufacturers to bring their prices down to match … and lower …

I would not be investing in Batteries yet … but I would be watching this space very carefully and expect exciting economic returns from Batteries within 5 years … possibly just 1 or 2 …

More details about options for adding batteries to Solar to follow next month …