RedEarth says its Troppo battery is first Australian-made unit to get CEC approval

Brisbane-based energy storage company, RedEarth, has had its high-density, lithium-iron phosphate batteries approved by the Clean Energy Council, making them the first fully Australian designed and made batteries to make the CEC list.

The 48V DC batteries – the modules that get combined with an inverter and various other smart controls and bits and pieces to form a battery energy storage system – are called Troppo-4841 and offer a nominal capacity of 4.1kWh.

As well as being Australian made, RedEarth says the Troppo is “the most advanced, high energy density, compliant Australian battery on the CEC list,” and can be used on- or off-grid, as lead-acid battery substitutes, or with any reputable (CEC approved) inverter systems.

The Troppo was added to the CEC’s list of pre-assembled battery systems approved for use in Australia on July 22.

“It is the only Australian-made battery listed on the CEC list, which is important for all government grant and loan programs,” said RedEarth co-founder and chief technology officer Chris Winter in a statement on Wednesday.

“End-users, as well as installers, can visit our Brisbane factory for a tour of our manufacturing line as well as a demonstration of the battery to be sure they are receiving the best battery module in the business.”

RedEarth teams the modules with Sungrow inverters in its own Sunrise hybrid home battery systems – which are also approved by the CEC, under its BESS category – to make an outdoor rated, plug-and-play BESS with a storage capacity of between 3.55-28kWh and back-up functionality in case of blackouts.

Jeremy Whaley, RedEarth head of engineering, said the performance of RedEarth’s batteries had also been independently tested by the Queensland University of Technology’s National Battery Test Centre.

“[The] module and the individual cells conform with stringent international and Australian certification requirements which have been certified by external testing laboratory TuV.

“This high level of rigorous testing and certification ensures that the Troppo is leading in its class for safety, reliability, price, and energy density.”

The Troppo includes a display that shows the state of charge as well as voltage and current, and also has the equivalent of an odometer (kWh meter) that tells customers and installers how much work the battery has done during its lifetime and how much more can be expected. It has a full throughput warranty for up to 10 years.

The battery conforms to the Best Practice Guide for Battery Storage Equipment, which has been achieved by the certification to IEC62619:2017 at both the cell and module level and AS/NZS 60950.1:2015. In addition, the battery module is certified to UN38.3 for freight, facilitating shipment worldwide.