Nissan and Eaton broaden xStorage Home energy storage portfolio; 10-year xStorage Buildings deal with Amsterdam ArenA
30 November 2016
Nissan and power management leader Eaton are broadening their portfolio of xStorage Home residential energy storage solutions—which can use second-life EV batteries—by introducing a range of six product configurations, giving consumers greater choice to meet their energy needs. This announcement comes as pre-orders of xStorage Home begin today in the United Kingdom, Norway and Germany with other European markets to follow in the coming months.
Nissan and Eaton also announced a 10-year deal with Amsterdam ArenA—home of Ajax Football Club and world-famous entertainment venue—to provide back-up power to the arena from second-life Nissan LEAF batteries. The 55,000-seat stadium has hosted numerous high profile concerts and sporting events over the years.
The Nissan/Eaton partnership offers xStorage Home, xStorage Buildings and xStorage Grid-scale products.
The xStorage Home system can draw energy from the sun or from the grid; the xStorage Home system can also enable customers to sell energy back to the grid—an opportunity that is expected to be offered by energy companies in the future.
The system gives consumers greater control over how and when they use energy in their own homes enabling them to avoid expensive tariff periods. The expanded range will offer consumers greater choice over power capacity and price as well as units. Consumers can opt to purchase units powered by either second-life EV batteries or new batteries.
xStorage Home units will be priced starting at €3,500 (US$3,725) excluding VAT and installation costs for a power capacity of 3.5 kW rising to €3,900 (US$4,151) for 6 kW. Storage capacities are 4.2 kWh and 6 kWh, with a 9.6 kWh option coming at the end of 2017. Units powered by new Nissan batteries will start from €5,000 (US$5,322) rising to €5,580 (US$5,939) for the highest capacity and will come with an extended warranty period of ten years.
xStorage Home comes with solar panel inverters already integrated; if a home is equipped with solar panels, the consumer can connect directly to xStorage Home, storing and then powering the home using renewable energy. It can also save money on their utility bills by charging up when renewable energy is available or cheaper, and releasing that stored energy when demand and costs are high.
The xStorage Home unit also has the capability to provide energy back to the grid in countries where the conditions enable customers to do so. This provides another potential revenue stream as customers will be able to sell stored energy back to the grid when demand and costs are high.
The system also provides the ultimate back-up energy solution to consumers. With smartphone connectivity, it allows consumers to switch between energy sources at the touch of a button.
The new xStorage Home portfolio marks the start of a longer-term commitment by Nissan and Eaton to bring new products to market for both private and commercial customers.
Nissan’s commercial offering, xStorage Buildings, is a solution for organizations to manage their energy usage more efficiently and power their business in a more sustainable, smarter way.The Amsterdam ArenA energy storage system represents the largest energy storage system in a commercial application in Europe using second life electric vehicle batteries. The xStorage Buildings system comprises Eaton bidirectional inverters and the equivalent of 280 Nissan LEAF second-life battery packs. The system will have 4 MW of power and 4 MWh of storage capacity.
Does use of second-life EV batts really enhance the life-cycle TCO of home power storage to any measurable degree?
My impression is that LC-TCO per kWh for off-grid or extended-outage-capable grid-intertie is basically limited by battery technology, both the high initial cost per kWh, and the relatively short life expectancy.
Used EV batts have both lower kWh capacity, and reduced remaining life expectancy. Also, failure modes at the end of their second life might be less than entertaining.
Last I dug into it, even NiFe batteries were a hard sell for the empowered home scenario.
Posted by: Bob Niland | 30 November 2016 at 01:37 PM