SunEdison, Inc. (NYSE: SUNE) has announced it is supplying advanced battery systems for a net-zero energy home project in Fontana, California.
Nine homes will have the energy storage systems installed in a project led by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and supported by California Public Utilities Commission.
EPRI will evaluate how net-zero energy homes featuring energy storage impact local electricity infrastructure. The research is important as California aims to have all new homes achieve a net-zero rating starting in 2020, followed by new commercial buildings by 2030.
“With this project, we’re pioneering solutions that will help Californians prepare for the future of the grid, where homes and businesses will be generating their own electricity on a much greater scale than we’re seeing today,” said Tim Derrick, SunEdison’s general manager of Advanced Solutions.
Meritage Homes and local energy utility, Southern California Edison, are lead partners in the project.
“Meritage Homes is excited to participate in this pivotal project,” said C.R. Herro, Meritage Homes’ vice president of Energy Efficiency and Sustainability. “Net-zero energy homes will be energy efficient, more cost effective to run, and have backup power in the event of a power cut.”
SunEdison designed the advanced battery system in partnership with Eguana Tech, LG Chem and Geli. The company will monitor and control the system to maximise energy savings and optimise load profile.
Closer to home, SunEdison Australia is continuing to prepare for Australia’s energy storage revolution. The company intends expanding its lineup with residential battery systems from manufacturers including Enphase Energy, Tesla, Fronius and other leaders in the field. Home battery systems based on solutions such as the SMA Flexible Energy Storage System are already available from SunEdison Australia.
The company says interest in home battery solutions in Australia is strong, with nearly 2,000 registering for pre-release announcements so far.
In June this year, Bloomberg New Energy Finance forecast rooftop solar panels and battery storage will provide more than half of Australia’s electricity needs by 2040. According to RenewEconomy, BNEF has predicted 37GW of small-scale solar solar power and 33GW of battery storage will be installed throughout the country by that time.
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