ArcActive CEO Stuart Mckenzie with battery at Deakin microgrid site

A re-engineered lead-acid battery system aimed at helping businesses cut power bills is now operating in Geelong, as its developer seeks to make energy storage cheaper and easier to install.

New Zealand energy storage company ArcActive has switched on the pilot at Deakin’s new Renewable Grid-Connected Battery Testing Facility at its Waurn Ponds campus, with support from Origin Energy.

ArcActive aims to make battery storage cheaper and easier to install, allowing more businesses to store solar electricity for later use and buy less power when prices are high.

Its system builds on lead-acid technology already used to support critical infrastructure, including telecommunications, hospitals and data centres.

ArcActive has redesigned the batteries’ internal structure, using a fabric framework to support the material that stores and releases energy. The design aims to extend cycling life while preserving low cost, making lead-acid more attractive for everyday energy storage.

The pilot operates within Deakin’s renewable energy microgrid, which provides electricity generation and storage for operational use.

ArcActive Chief Executive Stuart McKenzie said the pilot was a step forward in the company’s work with Origin to make battery storage accessible to more businesses.

“The cost of installing a battery goes beyond the battery itself. Businesses also need to account for engineering work, approvals, insurance and safety measures. If they don’t know what their site will need or how much it will cost, they can be reluctant to invest.”

Mr McKenzie said using lead-acid technology offered a familiar starting point.

“It is a technology that engineers, approval authorities and insurers already know. There are established pathways for approving and insuring these installations, which is an important starting point when you want to put batteries alongside businesses and occupied buildings.”

ArcActive is targeting commercial and industrial businesses that could benefit from storage but face costs and complexity that can prevent projects from proceeding.

“We want businesses to be able to deploy storage through a more standardised, repeatable process, with greater confidence about the cost, the approval requirements and the financial return,” Mr McKenzie said.

Origin’s Group Manager for Customer Solution Development and Emerging Technology, Bill Truscott, said trials such as this offered opportunities to learn about emerging technologies and their potential applications for customers.

“We’re interested in how new technologies could help our commercial and industrial customers innovate and manage their energy needs,” Mr Truscott said.

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