Brisbane firm reveals plans to produce $70m in ’complete’ home solar power systems
A pioneering Brisbane company will build a new construction line and hire staff as it prepares for another renewable energy revolution. Tesla should “watch out” in the battery market.
QLD News
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A PIONEERING Brisbane company which packaged the nation’s first “complete” home solar power system is preparing to produce more than $70 million worth of battery storage in the next four years.
Darra’s RedEarth Energy Storage is an Australian owned and operated manufacturer of energy storage systems for residential, commercial and industrial use.
RedEarth has raised $4.75 million to build a production line in Brisbane and hire staff as it prepares for another renewable energy revolution.
It has also signed a technology partnership with global engineering and technology company Siemens to develop a new battery system for the Australian commercial and industrial market.
RedEarth CEO Charles Walker, who relocated to Brisbane from the UK 10 years ago, believes more people will install a home solar battery system.
“People want to be energy independent,” he said. “Energy generation is cheaper from renewable sources than it is from fossil fuel sources and it’s been that way since about 2015.”
Mr Walker and co-founder Chris Winter hired 15 people last year and now have the production line running. It can produce up to 2000 systems a year. “It’s not just a solar panel or a battery or wires … it’s the whole system,” he said.
RedEarth systems come with access to dedicated technicians a customer could call to install, maintain or upgrade units. “We have to provide new energy systems with that consumer service in mind,” Mr Walker said.
He believes home batteries will have a similar take-up as solar panels did about a decade ago when prices started to fall. “The solar adoption has driven a need for batteries,” he said. “Once the whole system comes under $10,000 we’ll get maximum market take-up.”
RedEarth’s systems are about $14,000 and are usually purchased by people past their late 30s.
“There’s an economic disruption,” Mr Walker said. “Energy generation is cheaper from renewables and that’s what’s driving people.”
Mr Walker says Tesla should “watch out” in the battery market and urges consumers to buy Aussie-made systems. “We’re a company doing the same job and employing Aussies,” he said.
Learn more about jobs of the future at QODE, Queensland’s largest innovation and technology gathering, from March 24-25.
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