Joe Warren, managing director at UK energy storage start-up Powervault, says there is enough room in the market for multiple storage manufacturers as his company looks set to do battle with Tesla to win over British households.
Powervault has raised £700,000 (US$1.1 million) in finance through crowd-funding platform Crowdcube as it looks to install 50,000 storage solutions in the UK by 2020. The company held a previous Crowdcube funding drive in April which raised almost £400,000 in one day.
Try Premium for just $1
- Full premium access for the first month at only $1
- Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
- Cancel anytime during the trial period
Premium Benefits
- Expert industry analysis and interviews
- Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
- Exclusive event discounts
Or get the full Premium subscription right away
Or continue reading this article for free
The product, which has already been launched in the UK, is available in sizes ranging from 2kWh to 4kWh and the company claims it can be installed by an electrician in less than an hour without the need for any substantial rewiring.
But while Warren says that there is an advantage in being one of the first movers into a new market, he is not worried about the threat of Tesla dominating once its product is released later this year.
“Tesla has done the whole market a favour by bringing the concept of energy storage into people's consciousness. I think if you'd asked most people about energy storage, the average person in the street wouldn't have heard about it so they're doing some great work raising awareness.
“Look at the size of the opportunity – there's potentially millions of people that'll have solar PV systems – so there is room for a number of market players. I think there is a fast growing market available for everybody to address.
“I think the market is a large market, a growing market and there's room for more than one player,” Warren said.
For the full version of this story, including details on Powervault's pricing and why Joe Warren thinks the firm can stay competitive, visit PV Tech Storage.
