French-based Schneider Electric has come up with its very own lithium-ion home battery known as EcoBlade.
EcoBlade is expected to rival Tesla’s Powerwall home batteries which was just introduced to home owners in Australia early this month after Origin and Natural Solar were appointed as distributors for the product in December.
Although EcoBlade is not available on Australian shores yet, overseas media have reported it to be lower in cost than of Tesla’s Powerwall.
In a statement, Schneider Electric said that EcoBlade will be available to consumers this year and that its targeted price will be below US$500 per kWh.
The company said that EcoBlade is a "fully flexible" energy storage system powered by Li-ion batteries which consists of blades the size of a 30-inch flat screen and weighing under 25kg.
Each blade on the EcoBlade contains a smart connected battery module and is ready to use in standalone mode. For example, in a home equipped with solar energy converters from solar panels, individuals can use the energy generated by an EcoBlade for personal consumption or resale on a micro-grid.
The blades may also be used in racks connected to grids, data centres, buildings or secondary electric power stations with much larger storage needs, according to Schneider. At the highest level, the blades can be integrated into containers to provide multi-MWh and complementary energy management services for the entire grid.
“We are living in a very exciting time where new technologies enable us to completely rethink the way we deal with energy in a far more sustainable and efficient manner," said Schneider Electric chairman Pascal Tricoire.
Schneider Electric is a global specialist in energy management and automation with 170,000 employees in 100 countries. In 2014, the company's annual revenue stood at €25 billion.
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