Housing in Southern Africa May 2016

Energy Efficiency, Green Building & IBTs

Residential energy solution

T he solution allows residential users to improve efficiency in their overall energy usage, gen- erate their own energy and also store extra solar electricity for everyday use or for backup/electricity security. According to Alan Matthews, Man- aging Director of Energy Partners Home Solutions, this product is the country’s first integrated battery and inverter solution specifically for the South African home market and has the potential to minimise the user’s dependence on the national energy grid. “We believe it is going to revo- lutionise howSouth Africansmanage and store their energy at home.” He explains that the company embarked on developing the product to assist South African home owners with a solution to control their energy spend, especially when subjected to unreliable supply during load shed- ding by Eskom. “Like our corporate

Energy Partners Home Solutions has announced the launch of South Africa’s first-of-its-kind residential energy solution - the Icon Home Energy Hub.

capacity 16 kWh; a 4.7 kWheat pump; mounting structure to mount the panels on the roof and the balance of the system. The most recognisable global competitor to the Icon is the Tesla Powerwall battery, paired with a solar edge inverter, he says. “When this product was launched in South Africa recently it received a lot of attention, but the Tesla solution is focussed around the battery – which is 6.4 kWh. Our solution includes a smaller battery, but also includes a heat pump and an extra-large hot water tank. This means that it delivers almost double the saving and costs less.” Matthews says that besides the energy bill reduction benefit, the solution also reduces the homeowner’s carbon footprint and environmental impact andmakes the user independent of the grid. “The user can power essential loads for several hours, even if the grid is off, a feature that is simply not possible with grid-tied inverters.” The solution is extremely flex- ible. For example, it can be installed without batteries and then 3.6 kWh or 6 kWh of battery capacity can be added as needed. It also includes a remotemonitoring platformallowing the user tomonitor the status of their systemdirectly on their mobile app.” “We are currently only installing in theWestern Cape, but plan to launch inGauteng before the end of 2016. We are currently accepting orders and our first products will ship in June 2016,” concludes Matthews. ■

clients, they too were at the mercy of tariff increases. But, unlike corporate clients, they did not have teams of engineers and strong financial skills to draw on.” He added that the company spent 18 months creating this solution for homeowners. “Our solution enables home owners to take control of their energy, by supplying a set of reli- able products that form a full home energy solution, which combines lighting, water heating and renew- able energy.” The Energy Partner’s solution enables a family sized home to save up to 70% of its electricity bill and earn from a 16% return on their investment. “That is twice the sav- ing a standard solar solution would provide,” says Matthews. The Icon Home Energy Hub con- sists of two components: the Energy Hub Inverter and the Lithium Ion Phosphate Battery. “The inverter is a critical component in any solar en- ergy solution. Its main function is to take the electricity gen- erated (DC) from the solar panels and convert it into an energy form that can be utilised in the home (AC). The inverter also integrates with the battery to allow all excess generated energy tobe stored in the batteries for later usage.” The full household solution includes: the Icon hybrid inverter; 3.1 kWp poly crystalline panels; Icon 3.6 kWh LiFePO4 battery; 300 litre tank with a total average storage

May 2016