SMA Collaborates With Daimler Subsidiary Accumotive In The Field Of Storage Solutions
SMA Solar Technology AG (SMA) is entering a long-term sales partnership in the field of stationary battery-storage systems with Deutsche ACCUMOTIVE GmbH & Co. KG, a wholly owned subsidiary of Daimler AG. In doing so, the business partners are responding to Germany’s continuously growing storage system market. The Mercedes-Benz energy storage system based on lithium-ion technology is designed with a capacity of up to 20 kWh for use in private households and features excellent compatibility with SMA’s Flexible Storage System. The SMA system stands out in particular for its seasonal adjustment of battery usage and forecast-based charging. Both of these features contribute significantly to increasing the battery’s service life.
“With the combined solution of the Mercedes-Benz energy storage and the SMA Flexible Storage System, electrical energy can already be stored at costs comparable to German household electricity rates,” said SMA Chief Executive Officer Pierre-Pascal Urbon. “Thanks to our technological approach, we are able to configure the energy storage system to ensure optimal use of the power with regard to the user’s needs. With the Mercedes-Benz storage solution and SMA, private households can optimize the self-consumption of solar power they produce. The joint sales partnership means that we can respond to the promising market for stationary storage systems even better. For us, it is crystal clear that the future of the energy industry is decentralized and based on renewable energy. The use of stationary storage systems will not only speed up the energy transition but also create additional jobs in Germany.”
With the Sunny Island battery inverter, Sunny Home Manager and SMA Energy Meter as the key components, the SMA solution offers users of the low-voltage storage systems from Mercedes-Benz maximum flexibility and high quality. In particular, users benefit from the seasonal adjustment of battery usage, which contributes significantly to optimal use of the battery by considering the different weather conditions during the summer and winter months. “This is a unique advantage that reduces costs for users just as the forecast-based charging, which uses the integrated forecast to specifically charge the battery at times when solar irradiation levels are high,” said Volker Wachenfeld, Head of the Off-Grid and Storage business unit at SMA. According to Wachenfeld, if users also integrate energy monitoring into their system, they will receive an overview of all household energy flows via Sunny Home Manager, be able to visualize their yield forecast and electricity rates and to display recommended actions for increasing self-consumption and reducing electricity costs.
SMA presented the joint storage solution for the first time at the Capital Markets Day on January 29. The home storage solution will be available in the German market in March. Over 180 installers from across the country have already received training on the new energy storage system at joint SMA and Daimler events.
