South Korea’s leading battery maker LG Chem Ltd. will release a new energy storage system (ESS) to target the European residential market.

The company said on Tuesday it will unveil its new ESS products at the Electrical Energy Storage Europe 2018, which kicks off June 20 in Munich, Germany. The three-day event is Europe’s largest and most-visited exhibition for batteries and energy storage systems. LG Chem received the EES Award for its new Residential Energy Storage Unit (RESU) series in 2016 and stand-alone battery module in 2017.

The new RESU 13 is an addition to the company’s 48-voltage lineup with a battery capacity of 13.1 kilowatt-hour (kWh). This is 34 percent larger than its previous maximum model, the RESU 10 of 9.8 kWh. A typical German household consumes 12.1 kWh of electricity a day, meaning that the new ESS would be able to power large houses and even small factories, according to the company.

An energy storage device helps save power consumption by storing excess energy for use at a later time.

The new product would be available in European markets from the third quarter, LG Chem said.

LG Chem also revealed its plan to forge partnerships with major inverter manufacturers such as Germany’s SMA Solar Technology AG and Israel’s SolarEdge to broaden its presence in the residential ESS market.

As every home that installs an energy storage system needs an inverter to convert the stored direct-current electricity into grid-friendly alternating-current electricity, it is important to have close partnership with inverter companies, according to the company.

“We plan to penetrate Germany, the world’s largest residential ESS market, with our extended ESS lineup,” said a LG Chem official, adding that the company will also step up marketing efforts in Australia and the United States.

By Kang Doo-soon and Kim Hyo-jin

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