Distributed Storage

South Korea’s Rural Development Administration has created an energy system for greenhouses that combines photovoltaic-thermal (PVT) panels with a ground-source heat pump. It is said to compensate, via the PVT panels, the typical shortcomings of geothermal energy and to be able to reduce heating and cooling costs in greenhouses by up to 78%.

LG Energy Solution will start selling its new enblock S batteries on the US market in November.

The 5 kWh battery solution uses Ecoflow’s PV-coupling technology that reportedly ensures an easy connection to existing solar arrays. The new product features an output voltage range of 150-800 V.

Monash University researchers in Australia have developed a new lithium-sulphur battery design. They claim that it requires less lithium, with more energy per unit volume. It purportedly lasts longer and can be produced for half the price of the dominant lithium-ion technology.

Dutch company Triple Solar has launched a residential thermal battery with a heat loss rate ranging from 0.67 kWh/day to 0.84 kWh/day. The new product can reportedly provide hot water at temperatures ranging from 45C and 55C, with the minimum heat source temperature ranging between 65C and 80C.

Boundary Power is claiming an Australian first with the unveiling of a 100% relocatable, modular standalone power system. It integrates solar with a hydrogen electrolyzer and storage system, rather than relying on traditional backup diesel generators.

European warehouses are reporting very high inventory levels for residential energy storage systems, with aggressive prices expected, as distributors need to start clearing their stocks, according to S&P Global.

Battolyser Systems has improved the efficiency of its Edison battery for industrial hydrogen production. The Dutch startup said the levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) could be cut to €1.50 ($1.58) per kilogram by 2025. It has partnered with the European Investment Bank to support its expansion, with ambitious plans to hit 1 GW of production capacity by 2026.

The German authorities have attributed the recent explosion of a 30 kWh storage battery in a private home to a likely technical defect. The incident has left the home uninhabitable, and property damages will likely be substantial, according to investigators.

South Korea’s LG has updated a recall of its solar batteries, with Australia’s consumer watchdog warning owners of LG-branded batteries to “immediately” switch off their solar storage systems, amid concerns of overheating batteries.