Page 6 - Understanding energy storage batteries

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enough to keep them operational reducing the amount of po wer that can be used.

Different battery technologies require varying amounts of maintenance on a regular or semi-regular
basis which can add to their costs and reliability.

Lead acid batteries often require monitoring for fluid levels and sulphation.

Many lithium installations consist of a number of battery cells. These cells need to be kept in balance.
If 1 cell becomes unbalanced it is quite probable that an installer will need to come onsite and test all
batteries to determine which battery is out of balance and rebalance it before the installation will
operate as required.

Flow batteries need to be shut down on a 72-hour cycle for maintenance to reduce all zinc from the
electrode stacks.

Many lithium-ion battery installations require that they be connected to the internet continuously so
the batteries can be monitored and also to maintain their warranty. This can be problematic if you live
in an area that has power outages and your battery isn’t designed to operate as an off-grid battery.
Also, some people don’t like the idea that their battery can be monitored and operated remotely.

When you are looking at the cost of installing a renewable energy system it is critical you take into
account all costs involved, including health costs associated with air pollution, environmental costs of
coal powered energy production and all production and disposal costs of equipment and the lifetime
operating costs of any renewable energy system. These costs are not necessarily easily quantified
financially but they remain costs just the same.

There is no point asking for the price of a battery only without looking at the other installation costs.

If a battery installation takes 10 hours the labour costs involved will add a lot to the price compared to
an installation that takes 1 hour.

If a battery needs special housing to cater for heating or cooling or outgassing this will all add extra
costs.

What inverter will the battery work with and what are the costs associated with the inverter. Most
batteries only work efficiently with specific inverters.

With respect to price, sodium nickel chloride (SoNick) batteries are competitive today with other
battery technologies if you compare on a total lifetime kWh basis.

While other battery technologies might be cheaper on day 1 they certainly will not be cheaper over the
life of the system. For instance, most lead acid batteries cycle between 500 and 1500 cycles which
means that you would need to replace a lead acid battery system from 2 to 6 times more than you
would need to replace a SoNick battery system.

Lithium-ion batteries are more expensive than sodium nickel chloride batteries when one considers
the safety, fire suppression, management and environmental effects of lack of recyclability that is
required for this chemistry.

Flow batteries have pumps that will require replacing every 5 - 10 years.

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