Background on Sonnen – Company History
Founded by Christoph Ostermann and Torsten Stiefenhofer during 2010 in the German village Wildpoldsried. The intelligent energy storage system producer sonnen has the goal to emancipate the world from the reliance on fossil fuel, promoting the utilisation of decentralised clean energy. This has been achieved on a small scale by sonnen in Wildpoldsried, as the village runs on only renewable energy.
Shell acquired 100% ownership of sonnen in 2019. Sonnen has maintained is trading name and is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Shell
Sonnen is particularly known for their virtual power plant offer called sonnenConnect (previously called sonnenFlat) where users can receive extra benefits by ceding some control to Sonnen and their electricity retailer partner Energy Locals.
Sonnen’s batteries are manufactured in their facility in Germany and are one of the main brands who do not have production capacity in China. They have a local office in Adelaide to support Australian customers.
Sonnen Battery Model Range
Sonnen have two battery series that are available in Australia. There is the sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 which was their first battery launched on the market and the sonnenBatterie Evo which is their latest addition.
sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53
The sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 stands as the flagship product of Sonnen battery, representing a single phase all-in-one battery solution. The solution includes a hybrid solar inverter which can connect directly to your solar panel array and also charge/discharge the battery.
The battery uses a Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) chemistry which is known to be the more stable and safer of Lithium battery technologies.
The battery solution comes with a cabinet offering various sizes expandable from 2.5kWh to up to a maximum of 15kWh. There are two cabinet sizes offering a maximum of 5kWh and 15kWh.
Notably the environmental protection rating of the cabinet is IP30, meaning it is best-suited to an indoor installation. The battery is capable of operating through a blackout through the addition of optional hardware.
Even at the largest sizes, the battery is limited to a maximum charge/discharge rate of 3.3kW which may not take full advantage of the pair solar system or cover peak loads within an average household.
sonnenBatterie Evo
The sonnenBatterie Evo offers a solution for AC-coupled solar battery storage systems, manufactured in Germany specifically for outdoor installations. It has an improved environmental protection rating of IP56.
The Evo model is designed as a one-size fits all approach with its 11kWh nameplate capacity (10kWh usable capacity). This is a limitation if the user is looking for a different sized battery solution.
This model also improves on the blackout protection with is now built into the battery and able to provide continuous power of up to 5kW.
The battery is still a large single unit which makes for some logistical considerations during the installation process and will generally require more than one installer.
How Much Do Sonnen Batteries Cost?
The sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 isn’t able to be bought directly from sonnen. However, it is available to purchase through accredited installers across Australia. As the sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 is the premium battery on the market, it comes at a premium price. The below pricing is taken from Solar Choice’s database of installers and is an indicative final price for a basic installation.
| sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 indicative costs | ||
| System Size | 7.5kWh | 10kWh |
| Sonnen Battery Price | $12,000 | $14,000 |
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Sonnen Battery – Key Features
Blackout Protection
Both the sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 and the sonnenBatterie Evo can provide back up power during a power outage. The hybrid 9.53 model requires the installation of an additional piece of hardware to enable this functionality which will come at an extra cost to customers.
The sonnenBatterie Evo is also able to provide more power during an outage with output rated to 5,000 watts, while the hybrid 9.53 can supply a maximum of 3,300 watts.
Sonnen’s mobile App
Sonnen provides a mobile app which is available for android and iPhone. The app enables the user to check their system status, history, forecast and control white goods if utilising radio controlled sonnenSmart-Plugs.
At the time of writing, on Google Play the Sonnen app is rated 3.3 from 1,096 reviews.
Australian Warranty Terms for Sonnen Batteries
Sonnen provides a 10 year or 10,000 cycle warranty (whichever occurs first). This warranty meets the expectations of the market as most batteries come with a 10 year product warranty.
Sonnen’s warranty policy does not provide any guarantee towards the rate of degradation of their batteries over time.
It should also be noted that costs relating to transport, travel, and labour on an eligible claim are capped at a maximum of $200. This is a pretty low figure, as you may assume a warranty replacement may require multiple visits and labour costs in excess of $200.
It is positive to see that Sonnen’s warranty is backed by a local subsidiary who have an office in South Australia. Their team can be reached on a local phone number (137 666) and email address (service@sonnen.com.au).
Read Sonnen’s full warranty policy.
The Pros and Cons of Sonnen Batteries
Pros
- German made batteries supported by a tier 1 global company (Shell)
- Have local office in Australia
- Compatible with a virtual power plant offer across Australia with payment terms available
Cons
- Sonnen’s batteries are larger and bulkier solutions meaning more than one installer is required
- Priced at a premium to most battery options on the market
Read more product reviews from Solar Choice
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