The proposed new Australian Battery Performance Standard is intended to help residential and smaller commercial consumers make more informed buying decisions and drive confidence in the nascent domestic-scale energy storage market.
Energy storage is a vital element in reaping the maximum benefit from variable renewable energy sources such as solar power, and its role in Australia’s energy system is expected to grow as the country moves towards its 2020 Renewable Energy Target. In the same way that domestic solar has grown to be a significant part of the energy supply mix, the addition of battery storage to these systems is expected to grow rapidly. The DNV GL-led project to develop a performance standard for such energy storage solutions should thus provide a timely boost in consumer confidence to help drive commercial pick up.
To develop the standard, DNV GL has put together a consortium of leading Australian storage organisations, including the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), whose renowned battery testing expertise will predominantly provide input for developing testing protocols. Deakin University will explore battery capacity estimation approaches, and the Smart Energy Council will provide an interface with local industry stakeholders.
DNV GL will lead the project and prepare a draft proposal for the standard, provide input on the proposed testing requirements, drawing on its extensive experience with equivalent standards elsewhere in the world and the insights from its battery test laboratories in the US and Europe.
“The difficulty for consumers to make a well-informed choice presents a barrier to uptake of battery storage” said Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) CEO Ivor Frischknecht. “This project will give consumers a more informed choice and increased confidence in deciding to invest in home batteries and rooftop solar. This project will give people easy to access information on how reliable the batteries are and how well they perform over their lifetime in Australian conditions”.
Lucy Craig, Vice-President Technology & Innovation for Energy at DNV GL, added that energy storage is a vital component in the transition to a greener energy future and that through DNV GL’s efforts of providing the industry with performance Standards, the company is supporting the safe and sustainable development of the energy storage sector.
The project to develop the standard is jointly financed by ARENA and the Victoria State Government.
ARENA has contributed $1.4 million, while the Victoria State Government has provided $0.5 million via its New Energy Job Fund.
A draft proposal of the new standard is expected to be available within two years. This will then be submitted to Standards Australia for consideration to become an industry-agreed formal Standard. During this consideration process, the draft document will be made available as an industry best practice guideline for parties developing or installing domestic-scale energy storage solutions.
For additional information:
