Meatball and furniture retailer IKEA has started selling batteries for rooftop solar panels – a further sign that storage technologies are becoming mainstream.
IKEA has teamed up with London-based Solarcentury to launch the Solar Battery Storage solution online in the UK before rolling it out to stores.
The storage system, using LG Chem batteries of 3.3-6.5kWh, is designed to work alongside existing solar panels or as part of a new system. Prices for the IKEA Solar Battery Storage start at £3,000 ($3,970), whilst prices for homeowners who already have solar and want to add a battery start at just under £5,000 ($6,620).
Susannah Wood, head of residential solar at Solarcentury, commented: “Battery storage is set to completely revolutionise the home energy market, with solar home owners now able to maximise the amount of solar-generated electricity that they can store and use in their own homes. We believe IKEA and Solarcentury are offering the most competitive package on the market yet, so more people than ever before can profit financially and environmentally from investing in solar.”
Hege Saebjornsen, sustainability manager for Ikea UK & Ireland, said: “With energy bills already going up 15% this year, there’s never been a better time for customers to take back control of their electricity bills and maximize their savings by switching to solar and solar storage.”
The news of IKEA entering the UK battery storage market follows hot on the heels of the UK government’s announcement of plans to invest £246 ($325) million in battery technology.
