Australia could become the number one market for home battery storage, with the potential to reduce electricity costs by 35 per cent, a new report has revealed.

The new Climate Council report ‘Powerful Potential: Battery Storage for Renewable Energy and Electric Cars’ said that battery storage would allow households to store energy they capture from rooftop solar panels, and reduce electricity costs.

Battery storage can reduce electricity costs for households in several ways. Home battery systems can allow a household to store electricity from the grid when prices are lowest (during off-peak periods) and then rely on their battery for power (rather than the grid) during the most expensive peak time, minimising their overall electricity costs. A battery storage system can also almost double a household’s self-consumption of solar PV.

Two global home battery manufacturers have announced Australia will be their first market and the report suggests that battery storage is expected to grow very quickly in Australia and it will promote increased uptake of renewable energy and electric cars.

Battery storage technology has the potential to reduce the two biggest contributors to the cost of electricity bills in Australia – network and wholesale energy costs.

Ergon Energy estimates battery storage deployed at the grid level could avoid costs associated with building and upgrading the network, potentially reducing costs by 35 per cent.

View the full report here.