One Australian homeowner has saved $2,110.46 in annual electricity bills, paying a total of just $178.71 only in the past twelve months. The Pfitzner family, Australia’s first owners of a Tesla Powerwall have reduced their total power costs by 92.2% since their system was installed by Natural Solar in January 2016.
“This is one of the first in-market examples worldwide that shows the true savings battery power can make for consumers in the course of one year,” says Chris Williams, Managing Director of Natural Solar. “Power bills are continuing to surge at a rate of 10-12% annually, and coupled with the end of many gross-feed-in-tariff rebates around the country, there is no doubt there will be a continuation of sharp rises in electricity bills nationwide. As we see ongoing evidence of bill reductions averaging 80-90% directly from battery installations, there is no doubt this is the future for savvy Australian consumers.”
In 2015 it cost the Pfitzner family an average of $572.29 per quarter to power their home. Since installing this solar and home energy storage solution, their quarterly average costs plummeted to $44.68 in 2016. The October 2016 energy bill issued for the Pfitzner household was in credit $50.25 compared to their energy bill of $496.93 for the same period the year prior; a staggering 110% reduction in new charges.
“At Natural Solar we are huge advocates for battery power and its ability to generate dramatic genuine savings for consumers. This case study alone has shown people can generate income from their system at a time where power bills are surging and rebates have ceased,” said Mr Williams.
“In a market where power bills are continually soaring and people are celebrating a slight reduction in their quarterly running costs, it’s almost unheard of for a family to be able to power their house for as little as 50 cents per day. This isn’t just a dream, it’s a reality for many thousands of consumers who have switched gears and have made the switch to renewable storage solutions. Based on the first twelve months of power bills the return on investment and payback period sits at six years,” said Mr Williams.
Based in Sydney’s Hills District, the Pfitzner family home includes four bedrooms, internal laundry, a pool and outdoor entertaining area. Their personal home energy storage solution tailored by Natural Solar includes an array of 5kWp of solar panels, Tesla Powerwall, a SolarEdge inverter and fully integrated, bi-directional cloud-based monitoring software allowing unprecedented transparency on household consumption patterns and performance of their home energy storage system.
These equations will only improve as the technology improves, with the first Tesla Powerwall 2 battery installations about to occur in Australia. The new Tesla Powerwall is a 14 kWh lithium-ion battery that can be wall or ground mounted, installed internally or externally and stores the excess daytime solar production produced during the day. This power can then be used when at home during the afternoons/evening, avoiding the need to sell excess energy back to the grid. Tesla Powerwall, which carries an impressive 10-year warranty, has a sleek design and a range of exciting features including backup power. It is also affordable with a number of payment plans and options from Natural Solar allowing customers to be cash flow positive from day one. Full Tesla Powerwall and solar panel solutions from Natural Solar start from $13,950+GST.
“These results are phenomenal and are just the beginning of the future of battery power. With Tesla Powerwall 2 installations expected to occur in a matter of weeks, the anticipated ROI of solar and battery combined will only improve as the market matures,” noted Mr Williams.
“Since the announcement of Tesla Powerwall 2 we have seen the customer profile move from early adopters and tech lovers to a more mainstream ‘Mum and Dad’ market. The volume of consumer inquiries we received in the first 72 hours since the global announcement of Powerwall 2 more than tripled compared to the same time frame following the announcement of original Powerwall. There is no question consumers are recognising the value of innovation and are excited to benefit from this,” commented Mr Williams.
“This is an exciting time for renewable energy and battery power, proving a sustained reduction in power bills over the course of a year. For Natural Solar, this truly enforces how bright a battery powered future looks as well as the true value of our home energy storage solutions. Battery power is no longer considered an experimental start-up technology; it’s become truly established in the past twelve months and has continued to flourish and evolve, acting as a sound investment for Australian homeowners who are looking to achieve further independence from the grid. As home battery storage manufacturers continue to innovate, and economies of scale kick-in, we will see continual product advancements which will yield stronger results and bigger savings for consumers,” said Mr Williams.
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