Allume launches SolShare 2 with community battery integration

Melbourne-founded Allume Energy has expanded community battery storage integration on its shared solar platform, while also increasing the maximum solar capacity for its shared solar array by 50%.

SolShare 2 works on the same principles as the original product first launched in 2019 but adds battery energy storage system (BESS) capability. BESS dispatch is governed by the same proportional allocation logic that governs the solar side of the installation. Previous versions of SolShare could accommodate batteries in some configurations, but SolShare 2 extends that capability across any installation, according to Allume.

The system works by assigning each apartment connected to the shared system with a kilowatt-peak share of the array that can be split equally by floor area, service charge contribution, or weighted to hit specific energy efficiency targets. Top-floor and bottom-floor apartments typically score worse on UK energy efficiency assessments than mid-floor units, so allocating them a higher kWp share can produce a more equitable building-wide efficiency rating, which social housing providers in particular value.

SolShare’s system architecture connects multiple flats to a single rooftop PV array behind the meter, without requiring a separate inverter per home. The energy management device can serve up to 15 apartments, and the maximum capacity has been expanded from 20 kWp to 30 kWp. Units can also be stacked for larger buildings according to Allume.  For the initial launch, SigEnergy inverters and batteries will be integrated with SolShare 2 but Allume plans to expand the list of compatible products.

Jack Taylor, general manager for Europe at Allume, explained how the SolShare system delivers energy to each household in a way that maximizes self-consumption despite different load profiles across apartments.

“Every 200 milliseconds, SolShare analyses the building,” Taylor told ESS News. “It sees that you’ve just switched your kettle on and sends you solar at that moment. Half an hour later, you’re not using the kettle anymore and I’ve turned my oven on, so the solar comes to me. It constantly makes these decisions to maximize self-consumption and savings – but does it in a way where everybody gets their set allocation over the course of each month so it’s fair” 

Adding a shared battery gives the system more energy to work with and a longer timeframe across which to optimize.

SolShare 2 has launched in the United Kingdom as the government mulls an Australia-style subsidy program for community battery storage. A handful of community batteries are already operating in the United Kingdom, and the government is consulting with industry on a policy similar to Australia’s Community Battery for Household Solar Program.

Allume is referenced in the UK government’s Local Power Plan which highlights the system benefits community batteries could potentially offer. “Grid response is becoming more valuable as wholesale markets fluctuate,” said Taylor. “This is only going to add more value as time goes on.”

For certified installers, the commissioning process has been improved according to Taylor – the installation can now be carried out at any time of day, in shaded conditions, and assembly time has been cut from eight hours to 40 minutes.

An updated app is also available to walk installers through the process. Taylor added that Allume offers online training courses that can be completed remotely. “Once they’ve done that, they can design, quote install, commission and maintain a social system,” he said.

Social housing has been Allume’s primary focus in the UK market to date. A recent installation of an integrated solar and battery system across 24 flats in Cardiff delivered a 60% to 70% grid energy reduction, and a retrofit at Scott Court in Dundee – funded through the UK government’s ECO4 subsidy – upgraded building efficiency ratings without displacing residents.

Allume is now targeting the private rental market in the United Kingdom, and Taylor said it is able to do this through SolShare2’s expanded battery control capability

“A lot of the private market is about return on investment. We’re working with some interesting players to figure out what model works there,” Taylor said. In Australia, roughly 90% of Allume’s installs are already in the private sector.

Allume also has EU expansion plans. An installation in Essen, Germany, was completed in partnership with E.on, which has made a GBP 4 million ($5.3 million) strategic investment in Allume and operates across 11 EU countries. A multi-market launch is planned for 2027.