SIMON Corbell says battery storage has been made more attainable for Canberrans with three companies awarded $200,000 each to install discounted battery storage in the ACT.

“I am delighted to announce that SolarHub, ActewAGL Retail and ITP Renewables are the winners of the ACT’s $600,000 Next Generation Energy Storage Pilot, which will make battery storage more affordable for Canberrans, test the market and provide valuable information on industry viability at this time,” Simon said.

“The companies were chosen using a competitive grants process, which drew keen pricing for the supply of batteries. With each company receiving $900 for each kW of sustained peak output that the battery provides the government expects approximately 200 battery systems to be installed.

“This would equate to a discount of $2,700 for homeowners on a battery that can provide 3kW of sustained peak output.

“The pilot will inform future auctions for distributed energy storage with the ACT Government set to support 36 megawatts of energy storage to be rolled out across more than 5000 Canberra homes and businesses between 2016 and 2020.

“By committing to support battery storage in this early stage of its entry into the market we want to open the door for the ACT to lead research into high-penetration renewables and attract international and national companies and research leaders into this developing space.

“Locally distributed storage has a number of benefits, such as situations where it can be directed to specific locations to overcome network constraints and the avoidance of costly network investment.

“Getting involved with batteries at this early stage makes good business sense by encouraging start-ups and other industry participants to consider moving to the ACT where a concentration of industry know-how will make businesses more viable.

“Households and businesses interested in installing a discounted battery storage system should contact the grant winners directly.”