Each year, SunWiz publishes an Annual Battery Market report that is the most comprehensive and robust assessment of the Australian market for energy storage systems.
But in this fast-moving market, a lot changes in the 12 months between each publication. Prices change, as do product offerings, retailers rise and fall, along with manufacturer market share.
To provide mid-year updates to our annual figures, SunWiz publishes monthly data on battery uptake. Though not quite as accurate as our annual figures, the monthly updates provide a gauge of which direction the battery market is heading. Which is why we’re happy to report:
Battery sales remain at elevated levels.
SunWiz blends multiple datasources together to identify the ESS-to-PV attachment rate for sold systems. Battery attachment rates are only a smidgen (that’s a technical term) below their late 2023 record, but have enjoyed near-record levels for most of the first half of 2024. The attachment rate was 19% in June 2024; more specifically there were 19 battery system sales for every 100 PV system sales in that month.
By multiplying this monthly ESS-to-PV ratio with the monthly number of PV systems registered, we can infer the monthly number of battery systems installed. So far this year, approximately 29,000 batteries have been installed. This compares well with H1-2023, during which 17,000 ESS sold (using the same methodology).
SA & NT lead the nation on ESS-to-PV Attachment rate
But the battery attachment rate is not uniform across the country. Some states lead, most noteworthy are NT and SA, states which have held nation-leading attachment rates for a long time. But these are smaller states for population and for PV installations, meaning most batteries go into more populous states.
Battery sizes keep shifting
Battery system sizes are evolving in a much different way to PV system sizes. As we noted earlier in the year, whereas PV system sizes have gotten progressively bigger, battery sizes keep shifting due to consumer drivers, subsidy programs, and product availability.
Our annual battery report noted 2023’s resurgence of the 5kWh system. To illustrate how Our Annual Report informs your strategy, and the monthly subscription refines your ongoing tactical execution, there’s been a significant shift in battery system sizes in early 2024. One noteworthy trend is the near-complete disappearance of batteries smaller than 9kWh, and the reemergence of the 13kWh battery.