Power-One Inc. and Panasonic Corp. have entered into a strategic alliance to develop, produce and market energy storage systems for the residential and non-residential markets worldwide. The products will combine Power-One inverters with Panasonic lithium-ion batteries and systems.
As part of the agreement, the companies will leverage their respective research and development and sales and marketing resources for joint product and market development. Initial efforts will focus on developing the residential, commercial and utility-scale grid-connected energy storage systems business in Europe and the U.S., as well as the non-residential segment in Japan. Additionally, the companies have committed to develop the large-scale commercial and utility photovoltaic inverter business in Japan.
According to the companies, storage systems have been receiving a great deal of attention for their ability to reduce investment in equipment through power leveling and the reduction of peak power consumption in large-scale renewable energy systems, as well as for their use as backup power supplies in the event of natural disasters and other emergencies. It is estimated that the size of the global market for energy storage systems will exceed $11 billion by 2020, mainly in Europe, North America and Japan, where renewable energy technology is now being adopted, the companies add.
