Recent statewide policy changes in markets like California and North Carolina for the production value of residential solar energy, as it applies to distributed energy solutions such as home storage and EV charging systems, is stimulating the market for interconnected home energy solutions.
LG Energy Solution, a manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries, unveiled a new residential energy storage system, Prime+, which features flexible capacity to meet home back-up power needs.
LG’s new residential storage system connects two 10-hour batteries or 16-hour Prime battery modules in parallel to offer a capacity of 19.2 kWh to 32 kWh, with a maximum output of 9.6kW from the inverter.
Prime+ will officially launch across the U.S. in May 2023 and represents LG’s first residential energy storage system that includes an inverter in the North American market under its own brand name.
The company reports that the storage system’s modular architecture and plug-and-play design of the inverter ensures easy installation and compatibility with any existing photovoltaic array.
“It takes less than 10 minutes for full inverter and battery commissioning, substantially lifting the time burden for the installers,” said Ryan Simpson, sales director of LGES ESS Team in North America.
Prime+ is designed as a retrofit option for partial or whole home backup due to its compatibility with the existing PV systems. The company said that the new solution is expected to benefit California residents, as the third iteration of net energy metering (NEM 3.0), which took effect in mid-April.
Prime+ is offered in two configurations:
- Backup solution–includes the Prime battery, the inverter, and an auto backup device;
- Arbitrage solution– includes the Prime battery, inverter, and smart meter. If the customer wants to operate Prime+ for self-consumption only, then LG recommends the arbitrage solution as it is more cost-effective than the backup solution.
LG’s Prime+ platform includes a 10-year warranty for batteries, the inverter and the auto backup device, which ensures durability.
The company is hosting pilot sites under its installer network at multiple U.S. locations ahead of Prime+’s official launch to give installers the opportunity for hands-on experience of the new energy storage system.
LG Energy Solution, a split-off from LG Chem, is a global manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries for EV, mobility and energy storage markets. The company currently holds battery manufacturing facilities established through joint ventures with General Motors, Stellantis, Hyundai, and Honda Motor. BloombergNEF and SNE Research ranked LG Energy Solution as the third largest global supplier of EV batteries this year, trailing just CATL and BYD.
In March, LG released plans to invest $5.5 billion in two U.S. manufacturing facilities in Arizona. One will be for cylindrical batteries for EVs and the other for lithium iron phosphate pouch-type batteries for energy storage systems, representing the largest single investment to date in the North American battery supply chain.
The company plans to break ground on both facilities this year, and expects mass production of 2,170 cylindrical battery cells in 2025. These batteries will primarily serve U.S. EV manufacturers who are seeking made-in-the-USA batteries in order to take advantage of tax credits offered by the Inflation Reduction Act.
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I welcome sufficient home storage to provide a buffer for loss of grid power & here in MA to support the grid (with grid pool payments to support the battery).
However here in MA we require a fireproof room for said battery. So I’m waiting for a less fire prone battery chemistry.