A record number of battery installations occurred across Australia in 2023, according to a new report from solar and storage market analyst SunWiz.
According to the 2024 Annual SunWiz Australian Battery Market Report, a record 57,000 battery systems, or energy storage systems, were installed in Australian homes in 2023.
This represented 21% growth on installation levels from the previous year, 2022, and saw a record-setting 656MWh of residential battery capacity come online.
This capacity was increased by a record-breaking level of installations in businesses— 402MWh, on top of which, grid-scale projects, publicly known as big batteries, totalled a record 1,410MWh of capacity installed.
Related article: Northern Territory claims highest take-up of solar batteries
All together, a record total of 2,468MWh of energy storage capacity was deployed in Australia in 2023. As the typical home uses 20kWh per day, the batteries installed in 2023 were enough to meet the energy needs of 125,000 homes.
SunWiz managing director Warwick Johnston said the report demonstrates batteries are already reshaping our energy supply.
“2023 was the year of the big battery, with deployment levels at twice their previous record. 2024 will be even bigger, with the capacity currently under construction at six times the amount at the same point last year,” Johnston said.
“Despite the massive year for grid-scale storage, home energy storage systems still remain the largest cumulative source of battery capacity, at least for the time being.”
A whopping 254,550 battery storage systems have been installed in homes in Australia from 2015 to 2023 inclusive, totalling 2,770MWh of residential storage. Added to this is 593MWh of storage at businesses and 2,603 MWh of storage at grid-scale big batteries over 10MWh. All combined, this is a total of 5,966MWh of battery storage installed since 2015.
“Home batteries, or home energy storage systems, soak up excess solar energy during the day and allow it to be used in the evening and overnight. This helps households avoid high peak electricity prices and make the most of their solar power.
“The economic value of batteries is also increasing as the gap widens between what power companies charge for electricity and what they pay for Australian homeowners’ excess solar energy. Batteries also provide security against localised blackouts, which are increasing in frequency due to damaging extreme weather, due to climate change.”
“The benefit of batteries reaches far beyond their owners: batteries can also help stabilise electricity grids and facilitate further installations of low-cost solar power.”
Related article: AEMC draft rule to accelerate smart meter rollout
Key report findings
- The combined tally of 2,468MWh of battery capacity, or energy storage systems, installed across Australia in 2023 makes it a record year.
- A record-setting 57,000 home battery systems, or energy storage systems, were installed in 2023, a 21% increase on 2022’s figures. This was equivalent to a record-setting 656MWh of home energy storage systems.
- There was also a record-breaking contribution to the year’s tally from businesses—402MWh of capacity was installed within the National Electricity Market recorded in the AEMO Distributed Energy Resources Register.
- The year was also dominated by grid-scale projects over 10MWh, or big batteries, with capacity installed totalling a record 1410MWh.
- The ratio of battery installations to solar installations was 17%. Meaning there was one energy storage system installation for every six solar system installations. This ratio is up 15% in 2022.
