Electric carmaker Tesla is marketing its version of the same technology it uses in its high-performance automotive batteries as the "Powerwall," a battery for the home that can be used to store solar power or as a backup energy source. Image courtesy of Tesla.
New Hampshire’s homes could soon be at the forefront of the next big thing in renewable energy, after the state’s Public Utilities Commission approved a home battery pilot program on Jan. 17.
According to the commission’s decision, up to 1,000 Liberty Utilities customers will be able to sign up to have Tesla Powerwall 2 batteries installed in their homes. Liberty hopes the batteries will help stabilize its power supplies and make better use of renewable energy sources.
The problem solar and wind power pose to utilities is simple. While cheap to generate – wind and sunshine cost nothing, while coal and natural gas must be bought – utilities can’t turn on renewable power sources with the flip of a switch when demand gets high. Added to that, peak electricity demand tends to cluster in the early morning and in the evening as people get up and get ready for the day, or when they’re home at the end of the day cooking or watching television – exactly the times that solar and wind power don’t often produce much energy. Figuring out how to effectively store renewable energy so it can be used at peak times is crucial to expanding its use.
If the pilot goes according to Liberty’s hopes, the batteries will pull in energy from the power grid during off-peak hours, including overnight, and then feed the energy back into the power grid during peak times. Homeowners in the pilot who have solar panels on their houses will also be able to charge the batteries during the day, and will be paid by Liberty for the power they put in.
In all cases, participating customers will be able to draw on the power in the batteries in case of an outage.
Under the settlement approved by the PUC, Liberty will be allowed to install batteries in between 100 and 200 customers’ homes in a first phase. If that installation looks promising, Liberty will be able to recruit a further 300 to 400 customers, for a total of 500. Liberty will retain ownership of all 500 batteries.
Customers in the pilot will help pay for the batteries with a $2,433 charge per battery, or an extra payment of $25 per month on their electric bill for 10 years. Tesla offers a 10-year warranty on its Powerwall 2 batteries.
A further 500 customers will be able to sign up in this second phase under a “bring your own battery” program, where they partner with a third-party company to provide and install the battery.
Liberty had originally asked to deploy 1,000 batteries, but the PUC decided that such a program would be too complex, too big and, at $8 million, too costly for the utility to pull off at this time.
Liberty’s roughly 43,000 New Hampshire electricity customers are located in 20 towns around Lebanon, Salem and along the southern New Hampshire-Vermont border.
