The challenge
Increased demand for energy storage
The growth of renewable energy and global commitments to emissions reduction has increased demand for lithium-ion batteries. As 100% of Australia’s lithium-ion cells are currently imported from overseas, there is a need for Australia to develop its own battery manufacturing industry and support the growth of the local renewable energy sector.
Our response
An Australian-made battery management system
Responding to this demand, our partner, Energy Renaissance, has established Australia’s first manufacturing plant for lithium-ion batteries. Energy Renaissance’s batteries are safe, affordable and optimised for hot climates like in Australia and South East Asia.
Instead of relying on an overseas technology platform, Energy Renaissance decided they wanted an Australian-made Battery Management System (BMS), so they turned to the scientists at CSIRO to build it.The BMS is the ‘nerve centre’ of the battery. It is responsible for managing a battery’s operations to ensure it is safe, optimised and cyber-secure.
It also reports on the battery’s usage, lifespan and faults through a mobile network to Energy Renaissance and its customers. This system enables secure real-time data, analytics and remote management which drives down the risk of battery failure and cuts operating costs for commercial / industrial scale and defence-grade energy storage users.
The results
Australia's first gigawatt battery manufacturing factory
Our collaboration allowed us to create a world-class cyber-secure battery management system that is fully developed and managed in Australia.
With 92 per cent Australian components and growing towards a target of 100%, the Energy Renaissance superStorage™ family of battery storage products is also fostering the development of an Australian battery supply chain.
CSIRO's work has been an integral part of product development and contributed to Energy Renaissance opening Australia’s first gigawatt battery manufacturing factory in regional New South Wales.
This project aligns with the goals of CSIRO's Renewable Energy Powerhouse mission which brings together the work of our Critical Energy Metals and Energy Storage teams to deliver sovereign solutions to decarbonise our energy system.
Our Collaborators
