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Redflow halt delivery of Solar Storage Batteries – ZCell

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Sales of the zinc-bromide flow batteries pioneered by ex Internode CEO Simon Hackett’s Redflow have been halted temporarily after a number of faults were found in tests on seven recently replaced batteries. According to a press release, this was due to a “different observed failure mode.”

Redflow ZCell Battery

Redflow Energy Storage Zcell
Redflow Energy Storage (source: redflow.com)

Redflow’s main solar storage offering, the ZCell, touted as a Tesla Powerwall 2 competitor, has a number of significant differences to a standard lithium-ion battery and appears to still be in the problem solving phase of development due to the errors. A fault in the zinc-bromide flow batteries means that sales of new batteries have been paused pending “the outcome of further testing” after some impurities in the electrolyte were found “beyond acceptable levels”.

Although a disappointing outcome, the speed at which the problems have been detected and the rapid response from the Redflow team means that this is far from a death knell – the team are simply ensuring they’re able to deliver reliable and great value solar storage without compromising the integrity of the product.

“Most of these problems were resolved on an ongoing basis via ‘over the air’ remote deployment of updates to battery software,” according to their ASX market update.  “Thus, lessons learned from ‘real world’ customer deployments are being fed back into product improvement.” According to One Step Off the Grid, there are currently about $1m of backorders, 96 batteries in stock, and 120 currently in transit from manufacturing. Of these battteries a total of 23 have been repaired/replaced in 2017 – so a fairly small number.

Redflow Future

In other news as per an update on ‘working capital facility’ an extra $2m in funding has been offered by CEO Simon Hackett to the business.

“Redflow Limited refers to its announcement of 29 March 2017 and is pleased to advise that, at Redfow’s request, Hackett CP Nominees Pty Ltd (Financier) has elected to provide up to a further $2 million advance in tranches as and when required.”

So it looks like Hackett is sold on trying his best on making the zinc-bromide battery model work. They have an innovative design and there are many benefits to zinc-bromide solar batteries, so we hope to see great things from them in the coming months and years and this is just a minor problem. We’ll keep you updated!

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Sonnen / Bristile Roofing to offer Solartile in Australia.

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Some big news on the solar roof front this week – German battery storage company Sonnen have partnered with Australian roofing company Bristile Roofing to offer their Tesla Solar Roof competitor, the Solartile, to Australian markets this September.

Sonnen and Bristile Roofing Launch Solartile in Australia

Sonnen and Bristile Roofing’s concept of an integrated solar tile is in direct competition to Tesla’s Solar Roof, which has just begun taking orders for a 2018 launch. Bristle, part of the building materials group Brickworks, is mainly going to target the 102,000 new homes to be constructed in Australia in 17/18; it seems that they’ll be targeting developers and builders who are looking to offer integrated solar systems as part of their product range.

In an industry (solar + storage) which grew over 1000% in 2016, there’s plenty of room for competition and we’re excited to see what Sonnen’s reliable and proven solar battery solutions can bring to this partnership.

“We are delighted to partner with Bristile because of their prominent involvement in supplying quality products to the building industry,” said Sonnen Australia managing director, Chris Parratt, last Thursday.

You can read more about the SonnenBatterie Eco 8.2 battery system (this, or a variation of, will be offered as part of the solar roof system) on our solar battery comparison page.

Solartile Release Date, Preorder and Cost

No word yet on the cost of the Solartile – it’s set to be released this September and we assume that preorder will become available over the coming months. Please watch this space as we’ll update it as soon as we have any information about the Solartile preorder available!

SonnenBatterie Australia Solartile Battery
SonnenBatterie Australia Bristile

Solartile VS Tesla Solar Roof

Tesla, which has previously claimed the tiles would be no more expensive that a regular roof, released statistics showing that a ‘typical homeowner’ can expect to shell out approximately $US21.85 per square foot for the Tesla Solar Roof (assuming 35% ‘active’ tiles).

Prices and specifics are yet to be revealed for the Bristile Solartile but we will update as soon as they become available.

If you want to calculate how much your home would cost to fit out with the Tesla Solar Roof based on current figures, please use the widget below.

Solartile / Tesla Solar Roof Price Estimate

Enter your roof size below in square metres and get a price estimate for the Tesla Solar Roof. We’ll update this for the Solartile as soon as figures are available.


Estimated Cost:

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Eaton Nissan Xstorage Australia Release Date & Cost

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Eaton Nissan xStorage

The Eaton Nissan xStorage is an entry in the solar battery market utilising lithium-ion second life technology. It represents a collaboration between Japanese car manufacturer Nissan and power management company Eaton (who are based in Dublin and recorded $19.7b in sales in 2016). According to Nissan’s press release about the product from last year they expect to sell more than 100,000 xStorage units within the next five years.

It comes in three options of storage, 4.2kWh, 6kWh, and 9.6kWh – and is available in single phase and three phase power distribution (three phase set to launch later this year).

The xStorage has smartphone connectivity to see how your power is going for the day and switch between energy sources with a simple one-click interface.

All three options have 10 years battery life and according to Eaton’s website the Eaton Nissan xStorage boasts a 97% system efficiency. As it’s backed by two massive companies the system is supported by a network of over 1,000 distributors, working with qualified installers in 77 countries. The batteries will be powered by 12 battery modules from Nissan’s Leaf electric cars (hence the ‘second life’ tag).

“It is high time consumers were given the flexibility and power to control how and when they use energy in their own homes…the new xStorage solution combines Nissan’s expertise in vehicle design and reliable battery technology with Eaton’s leadership in power quality and electronics, resulting in a formidable second life battery solution.” said Paul Willcox, the chairman of Nissan Europe upon launch of the xStorage.

Click here to download the Eaton Nissan x Storage Data Sheet and learn more about this battery.
Eaton Nissan xStorage
Eaton Nissan xStorage

Eaton Nissan xStorage vs Tesla Powerwall 2

Cyrille Brisson, the VP of Marketing at Eaton: “Our system will be provided to end-users completely ready to use, with all required elements including cabling and installation by a certified professional, at a starting price of €4,000 (£3200) for 4.2KWh nominal. Our policy is to avoid hidden extra costs and achieve a lower total cost of ownership than other major offers already announced. “

  • The xStorage is ostensibly more expensive but the Powerwall 2 doesn’t include installation price (Tesla estimate $1,150 – $2,900 AUD) and the xStorage does (hence Brisson’s discussion of ‘hidden costs’ in the quote above).
  • 9.6kWh is the largest xStorage available vs the Powerwall’s 14kWh (13.kWh usable). The Powerwall can be daisy-chained (up to 10) but no word about the xStorage’s modular capabilities yet – we’ve reached out for comment from the manufacturer.
  • Both products are single phase and three phase power supply compatible.
  • Both products have a 10 year warranty.

In any case, this is moot until we’re able to buy it in Oz…

Eaton Nissan xStorage Australia Release Date and Cost

No word on an Australian release date for the xStorage – looks like it’s UK/EU only for the time being – but we have reached out via email to the Communications Director at Nissan, David Jackson, and will update as soon as we hear back.

Eaton Nissan xStorage Case Study – 10-year MOU with Amsterdam ArenA

The xStorage is currently in use at Amsterdam’s ArenA where they required full backup in the case of power blackouts – you can view a video case study below!

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Mercedes-Benz Energy Storage partner Vivint Solar

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Vivint Solar have partnered with Mercedes-Benz to provide a new line of PV solar + storage solutions for residential homes – and they’ll be bringing the Mercedes-Benz Energy Storage to California for some test trials in Q2 2017.

Vivint Solar already have an existing home solar panel business (they’ve installed over 100,000 solar systems in the US), and Mercedes Benz (under Mercedes Benz Energy) will be providing the technology for the battery storage. This tech is currently in use for their electric and hybrid vehicles. The battery systems will be modular, with the 2.5kWh cells able to be daisy chained up to a huge 20kWh. They also employ Mercedes Benz’ patented style and look fantastic. Personally we’re more interested in their performance but the slick design is definitely going to be a decent rival to the Tesla Powerwall 2 for the buyers focused on aesthetics as well as performance.

The battery will retail from USD$5000 for a 2.5kWh system (installed) up to around $USD13,000 for a 20kWh system.

Click here to visit the Vivint site and learn more about Mercedes-Benz Energy Storage.

Mercedes-Benz Energy Storage
Mercedes-Benz Energy Storage (supplied)

Boris von Bormann, the CEO of Mercedes-Benz Energy Americas was quoted as saying “As Mercedes-Benz electrifies its vehicle fleet, solar plus storage is essential to enable those vehicles to be powered by clean energy.”

With regards to their vision for Mercedes-Benz energy storage in other markets, Head of Development Electrics Harald Kröger said “We can count on the support of expert partners for our sales of the Mercedes-Benz energy storage units. The ideal contact for the end customer is their local electrical specialist.” This should give some indication as to their plans for expansion in the future and how they will manage strategic partnerships.

Mercedes-Benz Energy Storage Warranty

The system has a 15 year warranty on parts with a 10 year current value replacement guarantee.

Estimated battery lifetime is rated at 8000 cycles (charge / discharge) and about 90% of the specified capacity (about the same as the Powerwall 2) will be usable.  Expected residual capacity after 10  years is cited at >80%, while the Powerwall 2 is estimated to only hold 70% by this time.

The batteries can either be wall or stand mounted.

Mercedes-Benz Energy Storage Release Date and Australian Release

The batteries will be coming to California in Q2 2017 – to begin with they’ll only be available for new Vivant customers but according to the site they will be ‘expanding soon’ and you’re able to add your name to the waitlist at the bottom of this page.

According to EnergyMatters MB are said to be in talks with a local energy supplier with regards to an Australian release (as Vivint don’t have an Australian presence they will have to go with a different supplier). They’ve already launched in the UK and have small networks of installers in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Austria.

We’ll update you as soon as any information is available!

 

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BYD B-Box Solar Battery vs Tesla Powerwall 2

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Edit: As of February 2018 we have a new page with more information about the BYD B-Box in Australia – please click here to read it. 

China’s BYD (Build Your Dreams), the largest producer of lithium-ion rechargeable batteries in the world, have released a new solar battery, the BYD B-Box, to compete with the likes of the Tesla Powerwall, Redflow and LG’s line of energy storage. The media launch was in late March in Sydney and BYD have signaled their intent to move aggressively into the Australian market. They’re a gigantic company based in Shenzhen with a market cap of $22b (Warren Buffet owns 8.25% of the company) and are bigger than Tesla (their battery factory is currently producing a massive 8.6gigawatts, 8 times larger than Tesla’s Nevada Gigafactory) , so they certainly pose a very realistic threat to the incumbent solar battery producers.

BYD B-Box Models

The B-Box comes in high voltage (HV) and low voltage (LV) – with the B-Box LV Residential the solar battery we expect to be the most interest to Australian consumers. The LV model comes in four flavours, listed below (please note you’ll also need to purchase a compatible inverter to go with the B-Box – but given the size of the company we expect that won’t be much of a problem):

BYD B-Box Specs
BYD B-Box Specs (source: solarquotes.com.au via BYD brochure)

BYD B-Box Price in Australia

BYD’s previous solar battery, the Mini, was a 6kWh system which retailed for around $11,000 AUD. Technological improvements and component price decreases means that the B-Box 10 will cost $8,500 AUD for an a 10kWh system, representing a reduction in price per kWh of over 50%. Liu Xue-liang, sales manager has indicated that BYD will be throwing their considerable heft behind the product and BYD’s electric car business, being quoted as saying: “This is not just a new product, it is a new industry,”.

BYD B-Box vs Tesla Powerwall 2

In contrast to the Bbox prices previously outlined, the Tesla Powerwall 1 was a $10,000 system at 7kWh and the Tesla Powerwall 2 will feature a 14kWh battery at $8,000 AUD – slightly more impressive figures for their second gen offering.

According to Adam Clements from Solar Australia the price declines in solar mean a 5.5kW PV roof solar system, inverter, and 7.5kWh BYD battery costs around $15,00 and pays for itself over eight years.

The BYD can have an AC or a DC inverter, as opposed to the AC only Powerwall 2. The B-Boxes also have very high power output, with the B-Box 10 able to give 10.24kW of power continuously (this would empty the battery in less than an hour). In comparison the Powerwall 2 can only output 5kW so if you were using it off-grid or as a backup for power-hungry devices, keep this in mind.

Please take a look at our post on Solar Batteries in Australia and Tesla Powerwall Competitors and Alternatives for further comparisons.

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