GridEdge

07/06/2024

SoNick batteries are providing the energy backup to this project to protect against the frequent power outages in Yarram.

12/04/2024

Rural property using SoNick batteries for grid independence - Domestic Case Study

This domestic installation was designed to run as a grid minimisation installation. Although the grid remains available it is actually switched off.

The house is a rural property and is completely electric so electricity usage is higher than it could be for a normal suburban house. Water pumps, electric fences and all electric cooking can use a lot of electricity. Although the electric hot water uses evacuated tubes to heat with solar, this is often not enough in cooler months so the solar / battery system also heats the electric hot water tank.

As with all off-grid installations care is taken to use as much electricity using available solar during the day. This means equipment like washing machines and dishwashers, ovens and other cooking appliances are always used during the day while the sun is available and if possible, in the afternoon once the batteries are full.

This is an area with frequent power outages, often for many days so the ability to have power in an off-grid installation when the grid wasn’t available was the original impetus for investigating the off-grid solution.

For further information on getting safe, non-flammable molten salt batteries suitable for power outages visit https://gridedgenews.com.au/rural-property-using-sonick-batteries-for-grid-independence-domestic-case-study

If you would like to know more about getting safe, reliable, recyclable, Sodium Nickel Chloride (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at GridEdge.

We have a number of different sized systems that can cater to your budget and needs from household batteries to grid support installations in shipping containers. And they won't catch fire!

20/02/2024

Windy winter weather tends to bring trees down on power lines, cutting off your power supply as many people in Victoria have discovered recently. During the storm that crossed Victoria on 13th February 2024 over 500,000 people lost power and a week later many people in Gippsland and the Dandenong’s are still without power and some have been told it may be some time before their power is restored.

One of the main advantages of decentralised power supplies is that you are not so reliant on things that are happening in the main power grid and can keep a power supply when other areas no longer have one.

There are many flow-on effects when the power grid fails, other than the lack of electricity to power your house or business that may not be immediately obvious if you haven’t experienced extended grid failures before.

When there is no power for many people that also means no water as pumps no longer work.

Now we live in a mainly cashless society when there is no power there is no money flow as ATM’s and electronic transactions are no longer possible. In our area, nearly all the shops had to close for this reason as they couldn’t do any transactions.

In our area also, as there was no power the local petrol station couldn’t operate which meant there was no fuel available for the generators that many people were surviving on, even if they had had the cash to make payments.

For further information on getting safe, non-flammable molten salt batteries suitable for power outages visit https://gridedgenews.com/the-case-for-decentralised-power-proven-after-storm-power-outages

If you would like to know more about getting safe, reliable, recyclable, Sodium Nickel Chloride (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at GridEdge.

We have a number of different sized systems that can cater to your budget and needs from household batteries to grid support installations in shipping containers. And they won't catch fire!

06/02/2024

You often hear about new and better battery technologies that are coming on to the market and we often get asked should people wait for these better technologies.

We advise against this for several reasons;

- we need to act now to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, not tomorrow or when a better technology becomes available,
- any new battery technology takes 5 to 10 years to becoming proven and commercially viable,
- many great battery technologies have failed when they have been used in real life applications,
- there is no guarantee that current technologies will get cheaper, in fact due to resource limitations and new government regulations regarding safety and recyclability, it is highly likely current technologies will increase in cost substantially,
- although early adopters tend to pay a premium price for their equipment the amounts, they save in energy costs often make up for more than any reduced costs in equipment.

For further information on the issue with new battery technologies visit https://gridedgenews.com/the-issue-with-new-battery-technologies

If you would like to know more about getting safe, reliable, recyclable, Sodium Nickel Chloride (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at GridEdge.
We have a number of different sized systems that can cater to your budget and needs from household batteries to grid support installations in shipping containers. They are 100% recyclable, and they won't catch fire!

The issue with new battery technologies Posted on February 6, 2024February 6, 2024 by Linda Category Battery Storage You often hear about new and better battery technologies that are coming on to the market and we often get asked should people wait for these better technologies. We advise against th...

17/01/2024

When looking at the cost of a battery system, either domestically or commercially or as an electric vehicle it is important to look at “total cost of ownership” of TCO.

This means not only considering the initial cost of the battery but;
the costs of all the components of a battery system that are needed for an installation including inverters, MPPT’s, communications etc.,
the length of time to install a complete system,
The running costs associated with the system, including maintenance, The expected lifetime of the battery installation and
End of life disposal costs.

Up until now, in Australia, end of life costs for batteries have not been considered. This is becoming increasingly problematic for lithium-ion batteries. Multiple lithium-ion chemistries need to have multiple processes for dismantling, recycling and recovery processing, meaning there is not a standard recycling process that can be put in place.

In fact, lithium phosphate batteries (LFP), which are a safer lithium-ion battery technology, due to it being less likely to catch fire, actually have less value when recycling, meaning LFP batteries have a higher upfront cost but will also have a higher recycling cost, although they are inherently safer than Li-NMC batteries.

For further information on recycling renewable energy storage batteries visit https://gridedgenews.com/recycling-costs-to-be-added-to-purchase-cost-of-renewable-energy-storage-batteries-new-australian-legislation-coming/

If you would like to know more about getting safe, reliable, recyclable, Sodium Nickel Chloride (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at GridEdge.

We have a number of different sized systems that can cater to your budget and needs from household batteries to grid support installations in shipping containers. They are 100% recyclable, and they won't catch fire!

Recycling costs to be added to purchase cost of renewable energy storage batteries – new Australian legislation coming. Posted on January 17, 2024January 17, 2024 by Linda Category Battery recycling When looking at the cost of a battery system, either domestically or commercially or as an electric...

09/01/2024

Protect yourself and prepare for power outages in coming bushfire season

As the current summer season approaches in Australia, we are receiving more warnings of a possibly severe bushfire season. With memories of the disasters of 2019 – 2020 many people still remember being without power for days and weeks due to power lines being brought down and the dangers of reconnecting the power grid.

This threat of bushfire is becoming an increasing and more serious and long-lasting reality every year, both in Australia and overseas.

Power supply companies are turning off power earlier, particularly in areas with above ground powerlines, when there is a threat of bushfires, to prevent their infrastructure causing more fires.

Particularly in rural areas, loss of power also affects access to water, as electric water pumps no longer work. This can be devasting to livestock as well as humans and often means there is no longer access to water to fight fires.

For further information on getting non-flammable molten salt batteries suitable for bushfire situations visit https://gridedgenews.com/protect-yourself-and-prepare-for-power-outages-in-coming-bushfire-season/

f you would like to know more about getting safe, reliable, recyclable, Sodium Nickel Chloride (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at GridEdge.
We have a number of different sized systems that can cater to your budget and needs from household batteries to grid support installations in shipping containers. And they won't catch fire!

21/12/2023

A crucial part of our new energy transition is the usage of batteries to store energy, either as backup power for when the grid goes down or to reduce energy costs, to stabilize the grid or in EV’s. This transition will involve trade-offs and by adhering to ESG principles companies can make sure their governance covers factors that make sure that the net result of this transition is positive from the environment and social angles.

Many battery manufacturing companies claim their batteries will be good for the environment, however they fail many of the ESG markers.

One way to ensure batteries or indeed any other product will be good for the environment overall is to make sure that all parts of a products life from a cradle to grave or life cycle assessment perspective are taken into account.

For further information on the cradle to Grave assessment of the SoNick, molten salt batteries visit
https://gridedgenews.com/sonick-the-cradle-to-grave-certified-battery

If you would like to know more about getting safe, reliable, recyclable, Sodium Nickel Chloride (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at GridEdge.

We have a number of different sized systems that can cater to your budget and needs from household batteries to grid support installations in shipping containers. And they won't catch fire!

SoNick – the Cradle to Grave certified battery Posted on December 1, 2023December 21, 2023 by Linda Category Energy storage, Life Cycle Analysis - LCA A crucial part of our new energy transition is the usage of batteries to store energy, either as backup power for when the grid goes down or to red...

29/10/2023

A recent joint project between GridEdge, Earthworker Energy and DEECA was to build 3 prototype portable renewable energy systems to supply renewable power for replacement of large diesel generators in emergency response settings supporting DELWP, CFA and SES

The prototypes were;

– 58 kWh battery energy storage, 20 kVA inverter capacity, single phase and 15 kW PV in a custom-built shell on skids similar to current diesel generators

– 20 kWh battery energy storage, 5 kVA inverter capacity and 1.5 kW PV in a portable Trailer

– A portable site hut with built-in 9.6 kWh battery, 5 kVA inverter capacity and 5 kVA PV generation capacity.
These prototypes are specifically designed to respond to the problems identified during the Bushfire Royal Commission, and from what was learnt about grid failures in other emergency situations.

The 3 prototypes will provide low carbon options for emergency response agencies whilst demonstrating safe, quiet and zero emissions for emergency response staff and volunteers to be piloted in base camps.

If you would like to know more about getting one of these portable renewable energy systems using safe, reliable, recyclable, SoNick (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at https://gridedgenews.com/mobile-renewable-energy-systems-for-emergency-services/

20/10/2023

The first Zebra battery cabinet has now been installed at the Radial timber mill project in Yarram with 90 kWh battery backup to support the 100 KW solar PV.

A major additional benefit to the backup facility is the protection against brownouts and blackouts that will greatly reduce downtime in reprogramming machinery. This alone will provide a major benefit to the profitability of the mill.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/fzsonickgroup_renewableenergy-energystorage-batteries-activity-6986280993087188992-G5S8/

If you would like to know more about getting safe, non-flammable, reliable, recyclable, SoNick (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at http://gridedgenews.com/advantages-of-sonick-battery-for-installations/