Home batteries are here – why domestic energy storage is about to go mainstream

Electricity supplier EDF Energy has partnered with Powervault to offer customers with solar panels the opportunity to buy battery systems for their home to store any excess energy.

“Through our grid services, householders with solar photovoltaics will be able to become part of a national network of small-scale batteries that will help balance demand for electricity on the grid, while enabling them to save money by making the most of the solar energy they are generating,” says Jean-Benoit Ritz, EDF’s director of innovation. 

Powervault says the latest version of its technology, Powervault 3, can cut electricity bills by up to 50% by storing solar energy and discharging it in the evening. The system uses lithum-polymer batteries with a range of capacity options from 4.1kWh to 20.5kWh. 

Eventually, it could even be installed in houses without solar panels – savings of 15% could be had simply by buying cheap off-peak power and storing it for use at peak times. But the prices (starting at £3,299) will have to fall for that to be feasible.