New research finds battery storage can save families money

New research from an Adelaide university has found that battery power storage has reached a tipping point where it’s worth the investment and can save families money.

Samantha Corns’ family-of-five uses batteries to power their home and said they are “basically living off the grid.”
The battery, which stores energy generated by her rooftop solar panels, cost her $9,000 after subsidies, and has helped to dramatically slash her power bills.

“We should be absolutely zero, in credits actually,” Ms Corns said.

“It just made financial sense then.”

A study at the University of South Australia agrees.
It found that South Australia has reached the point where a battery will homes enough money to pay for itself, within its warranty period.

“They can actually save money now, if they get the right battery at the right size, at the right price,” researcher Vanika Sharma said.
Experts say before a battery is purchased, there are a few things to know, including the size of current solar panels, the house-hold energy consumption per day and what power cost you sand how much you’d get for feeding it back.

“Definitely we need something to become reliable… and the battery storage is that. It will make that solar energy reliable,” Ms Sharma said.

The next step for researchers is to compare the benefits of having individual batteries to a neighbourhood hub trying to find the optimal set up that will minimise both waste and cost.

Source: 9news.com.au