Founded by Christoph Ostermann and Torsten Stiefenhofer during 2010 in the German village Wildpoldsried. The intelligent energy storage system producer sonnen has the goal to emancipate the world from the reliance on fossil fuel, promoting the utilisation of decentralised clean energy. This has been achieved on a small scale by sonnen in Wildpoldsried, as the village runs on only renewable energy.
Shell acquired 100% ownership of sonnen in 2019. Sonnen has maintained is trading name and is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Shell
Sonnen is particularly known for their virtual power plant offer called sonnenConnect (previously called sonnenFlat) where users can receive extra benefits by ceding some control to Sonnen and their electricity retailer partner Energy Locals.
Sonnen’s batteries are manufactured in their facility in Germany and are one of the main brands who do not have production capacity in China. They have a local office in Adelaide to support Australian customers.
Sonnen Battery Model Range
Sonnen have two battery series that are available in Australia. There is the sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 which was their first battery launched on the market and the sonnenBatterie Evo which is their latest addition.
sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53
The sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 stands as the flagship product of Sonnen battery, representing a single phase all-in-one battery solution. The solution includes a hybrid solar inverter which can connect directly to your solar panel array and also charge/discharge the battery.
The battery uses a Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) chemistry which is known to be the more stable and safer of Lithium battery technologies.
The battery solution comes with a cabinet offering various sizes expandable from 2.5kWh to up to a maximum of 15kWh. There are two cabinet sizes offering a maximum of 5kWh and 15kWh.
Notably the environmental protection rating of the cabinet is IP30, meaning it is best-suited to an indoor installation. The battery is capable of operating through a blackout through the addition of optional hardware.
Even at the largest sizes, the battery is limited to a maximum charge/discharge rate of 3.3kW which may not take full advantage of the pair solar system or cover peak loads within an average household.
sonnenBatterie Evo
The sonnenBatterie Evo offers a solution for AC-coupled solar battery storage systems, manufactured in Germany specifically for outdoor installations. It has an improved environmental protection rating of IP56.
The Evo model is designed as a one-size fits all approach with its 11kWh nameplate capacity (10kWh usable capacity). This is a limitation if the user is looking for a different sized battery solution.
This model also improves on the blackout protection with is now built into the battery and able to provide continuous power of up to 5kW.
The battery is still a large single unit which makes for some logistical considerations during the installation process and will generally require more than one installer.
How Much Do Sonnen Batteries Cost?
The sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 isn’t able to be bought directly from sonnen. However, it is available to purchase through accredited installers across Australia. As the sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 is the premium battery on the market, it comes at a premium price. The below pricing is taken from Solar Choice’s database of installers and is an indicative final price for a basic installation.
sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 indicative costs
System Size
7.5kWh
10kWh
Sonnen Battery Price
$12,000
$14,000
Compare quotes from up to 7 installers in your area now.
Sonnen Battery – Key Features
Blackout Protection
Both the sonnenBatterie hybrid 9.53 and the sonnenBatterie Evo can provide back up power during a power outage. The hybrid 9.53 model requires the installation of an additional piece of hardware to enable this functionality which will come at an extra cost to customers.
The sonnenBatterie Evo is also able to provide more power during an outage with output rated to 5,000 watts, while the hybrid 9.53 can supply a maximum of 3,300 watts.
Sonnen’s mobile App
Sonnen provides a mobile app which is available for android and iPhone. The app enables the user to check their system status, history, forecast and control white goods if utilising radio controlled sonnenSmart-Plugs.
At the time of writing, on Google Play the Sonnen app is rated 3.3 from 1,096 reviews.
Australian Warranty Terms for Sonnen Batteries
Sonnen provides a 10 year or 10,000 cycle warranty (whichever occurs first). This warranty meets the expectations of the market as most batteries come with a 10 year product warranty.
Sonnen’s warranty policy does not provide any guarantee towards the rate of degradation of their batteries over time.
It should also be noted that costs relating to transport, travel, and labour on an eligible claim are capped at a maximum of $200. This is a pretty low figure, as you may assume a warranty replacement may require multiple visits and labour costs in excess of $200.
It is positive to see that Sonnen’s warranty is backed by a local subsidiary who have an office in South Australia. Their team can be reached on a local phone number (137 666) and email address (service@sonnen.com.au).
Compare quotes from up to 7 pre-vetted installers in your area now. Since 2008 our knowledge and sophisticated software has allowed over 300,000 Australian households and businesses to make a well-informed choice on their solar & battery installer.
Jeff has consulted on over 20MW of commercial solar projects, ranging from SMEs to ASX top 100 companies. Jeff has also provided independent advice to 100s of residential solar, battery and EV charging customers across every state in Australia. He holds an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management and is an expert in business strategy and financial analysis.
Have had the battery installed for a couple of days and even though we are experiencing thunderstorms and a lot of cloud cover I can still notice a difference. Am looking forward to seeing what this system can now do once the sun comes out again :)
1st October 2024
David
-
system
5.00
The APP makes managing the battery so simple.
19th September 2024
Barry
-
system
5.00
The Sonnen battery seems to be very efficient. Is not too big and can be inside your single garage and still have room for a car. The Sonnen App is excellent and you can monitor exactly what the battery is doing such as current flow from your panels to your battery or to your home. Charge lasts all day and powers our home until at least midnight, with nothing from the Grid. Can't wait to see our next Elec Invoice from our Retailer.
2nd August 2024
Terry
-
9kW system
Review left 3 years after system installed
1.00
Inverter failed after 12 months. It has been down for three years and Sonnen are refusing to support the Warranty. Sonnen claim their installer installed the system incorrectly. They only made this statement after 3 years of failing to fix the system. Now the installation company has ceased trading and Sonnen have wiped their hands of the problem. They won’t even respond to emails or phone calls now. I have reported them to the ACCC, and started proceedings through Fair Trade.
26th October 2023
Sean
VIC - 3340
10kW system
Review left 4 years after system installed
4.00
The only drawback with Sonnen is the power transfer limit of 2.5 kwh. Quality of product and service is very good.
21st February 2023
Alex
VIC - 3186
6kW system
5.00
Happy with the battery, only comment would be Sonnen were a bit slow at getting back to my installer with an issue we had.
