Fronius, BYD partner for three-phase backup power supply

A new three-phase residential inverter and battery solution will be introduced to the Australian market in the new year. Fronius and BYD underlined their collaborative agreement when representatives of the two companies met “recently” in Austria. Fronius believes the solution is the first of its kind to provide “this type of emergency power supply.”

December 12, 2018 Jonathan Gifford

Martin Hackl from Fronius with BYD's Julia Chen in Austria.

Photo: Fronius

There is an increasing awareness that when it comes to providing backup power, not all solar battery solutions are created equal. While some will provide sufficient power to keep things like a fridge running, others can supply all but the most demanding of loads.

Not every household demand the same level of backup or emergency power supply, and matching the system with the budget and needs of the household appears to be key. The ability to island the household from the grid, so that rooftop solar can utilized by the household during daylight hours if the grid goes down, is an additional bonus.

Austria’s Fronius International GmbH and BYD Company Ltd. have signed a strategic partnership to deliver what they describe as “the highest level of self sufficiency” delivered by an inverter, battery combination. The unique aspect of the partnership is that it couples the three phase Fronius Symo Hybrid with BYD’s modular B-Battery Box HV.

The companies report that the three-phase residential offering can deliver 400 V three-phase supply in the event of a power outage. Fronius has worked to make its Symo Hybrid compatible with the BYD lithium iron phosphate battery chemistry and power electronics.

“As yet, there are still hardly any solutions for providing three-phase emergency power from a battery,” said Fronius’ Head of Solar Energy Martin Hackl in a statement. “This is something we’re now changing. Using the BYD Battery-Box HV makes us the only supplier providing this type of emergency power supply.”

Fronius has already coupled its hybrid three-phase inverter to one of the BYD Battery Box units at its Technology Centre in Gmunden, Austria. BYD representatives, including Global Sales Director of BYD Batteries Julia Chen recently visited the facility. “We are delighted to collaborate with such a renowned and committed partner as Fronius in offering our high-quality solutions,” said Chen.

The BYD Battery box is available in capacities ranging from 6.4kWh, through to 11.5kWh. BYD supplies both distributed and large scale storage solutions.

The newly compatible Fronius Symo Hybrid will be released in Australia and Europe in Q1 2019. Fronius expects to achieve around 40% residential market share in Australia in 2018.

Despite their collaboration, neither Fronius nor BYD are keeping things exclusive. BYD recently partnered with Germany’s Kostal and Fronius works also with LG on residential storage.

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