LG Energy Solutions Battery: An Independent Review by Solar Choice

LG Chem Battery Banner

Background on LG Chem – Company History

Established in Korea as Lucky Chemical Co in 1947, the company initially produced cosmetic products. The first product produced by Lucky Chemical Co was a cosmetic product named ‘lucky cream’. It wasn’t until 1995 that the company name was changed to the current LG Chem Ltd. In recent years LG Chem has rebranded to LG Energy Solutions.

LG Energy Solutions is a sister company of LG Electronics and is Korea’s largest diversified chemical company. LG Chem currently operates a number of different business units besides energy storage solutions. These being, Petrochemicals, IT, and Electronic Materials.

LG Energy Solutions entered the energy storage solutions market in 2010 and were one of the early pioneers in Lithium battery storage technology. LG Energy Solutions has manufacturing facilities in Poland, Korea, China, and the US. In Australia, they have a local office based in Eastern Creek, NSW.

LG Solar Battery Price

The LG Chem battery range isn’t able to be bought directly from LG Chem. However, it is available to purchase through accredited installers across Australia. The typical household would go for a battery size in the range of 5kWh to 10kWh. The prices listed below do not include installation or inverter costs. If you live in SA, NSW, VIC, or ACT these states have a home battery scheme or rebate in place. For more information on these schemes and rebates refer to the end of this article.

LG Chem RESU Range
System Size6.4kWh9.8kWh
Price$6000$7500

LG Solar Battery Options

LG has a broad range of solar batteries which can be paired with a variety of solar inverters. They also have some batteries that are designed specifically to integrate with their own branded hybrid inverter (LGES-5048).

LG RESU Low Voltage Solar Batteries

LG Chem RESU 13 low voltage battery

LG’s RESU (Residential Energy Storage Unit) is their flagship battery range. The low voltage options range from 6.5kWh up to 13.1kWh in capacity with a voltage range typically within 42V to 60V.

The LG RESU solar batteries utilise a Lithium-Ion chemistry which is made up of Lithium, Nickel, Manganese and Cobalt. This is a high performing battery chemistry, but is typically higher priced that Lithium Iron Phosphate solutions.

The batteries are compatible with their own branded inverter along with Selectronic, Solis, Sungrow, Goodwe and SMA inverters. It takes significant engineering effort to ensure compatibility with 3rd party inverters so this flexibility is a key advantage of LG’s solar batteries.

All the low voltage options have an environment protection rating of IP55 which means their best suited to an indoor installation. Although they are still warrantied for outdoor installations there are other battery options on the market with higher protection.

LG RESU High Voltage Prime Solar Batteries

LG Solar Battery RESU16H Prime

LG’s RESU Prime series comes in 9.6kWh (RESU10H) or a 16kWh (RESU16H) options. The higher voltage range of batteries was developed to compete with the other major Lithium-ion battery manufacturer Tesla.

The batteries operate at around 400 volts. You can pair 2 of the RESU10H or the RESU16H batteries together to reach a combined 19.2kWh or 32kWh solution respectively.

The Prime series also has the benefit of offering 100% depth of discharge meaning owners can utilise the full nameplate capacity of the batteries. The DC/DC converter has an efficiency rating of 97.5% which means in optimal conditions you can access 95% of the energy that goes into the battery in a cycle.

Like their low voltage equivalents, the LG RESU Prime batteries are rated to an environment protection of IP55 which means they are best suited to an indoor installation.

Compare quotes from up to 7 installers in your area now.

 The Chemistry Behind LG Chem RESU

The LG’ Chem’s RESU range are all Lithium-ion batteries. Each RESU battery is formed with cells utilising LG Chem’s ‘Lamination and Stacking’ method. This structure produces a higher energy density by reducing the dead space, enhancing cell sustainability.

LG incorporates a patented ‘Safety Reinforced Separator’ which increases the mechanical and thermal stability of the battery cells. Each model in the LG Chem range is equipped with a battery management system, this enables total autonomy of the battery.

LG Chem Warranty Offer for Australian Customers

LG batteries typically come with a 10-year warranty. During the 10 years they guarantee their batteries will retain at least 60% of their Nominal Energy (70% for the RESU 10H Prime and RESU 16H Prime), defined as the initially rated capacity.

To maintain the validity of this 10-year Performance Warranty, there are a list of typical conditions including installation according to the set guidelines. It is important to use a qualified and experienced installer.

One notable condition is that the ambient temperature during operation should stay within -10°C to 45°C. This may present a challenge in certain parts of Australia even in shaded conditions.

You can read more about the LG Chem battery warranty document here:

RESU 6.5kWh and RESU 10 Warranty

RESU 12 Warranty

RESU 10H and 16H Prime Warranty

LG Chem RESU Battery Range Specifications 

 LG Chem RESU3.3 LG Chem RESU6.5 LG Chem RESU10 LG Chem RESU13 LG Chem RESU10H Type-R LG Chem RESU10H Type-C
Nominal Capacity 3.3kWh6.5kWh9.8kWh13.1kWh9.8kWh
Usable Capacity 2.9kWh5.9kWh8.8kWh12.4kWh9.3kWh
System Nominal Voltage 51.8V
System Voltage Range42.0-58.8V350-450V430-550V
Charge/Discharge Power3kW4.2kW5kW x5kW
DC Round Trip Efficiency 95%
Battery Cell TechnologyLithium-ion
Capacity63Ah126Ah189Ah252Ah63Ah
Dimensions (W x H x D)452 x 403 x 120 mm 452 x 656 x 120 mm 452 x 484 x 227 mm452 x 626 x 227 mm 744 x   907 x   206 mm 744 x   907 x   206 mm
Weight31kg52kg75kg99kg97kg99.8kg
Operating Temperature Range-10 °C to 45 °C
Enclosure Protection RatingIP55
Outdoor/IndoorBoth
Wall MountableYes
Warranty10 years

Pros and Cons of LG Chem Battery

Pros:

  • Large multinational company with local Australian support
  • Compatible with a range of solar inverters
  • Long reputation in Australia for reliable products

Cons:

  • Higher cost than other brands
  • Limited ability to expand the battery capacity beyond set sizes

Home Battery Scheme

South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria, and Australian Capital Territory all currently have a home battery scheme in place.

The South Australian Home Battery Scheme enables eligible South Australian residents to receive up to $4,000 per installed battery.

The New South Wales Home Battery Scheme offers an interest-free loan up to $9000 for eligible households looking to install a solar battery.

The Victorian Government under the Solar Homes Program provides to those eligible, a maximum discount of $4,174 off the battery sale price. The next release of battery rebates is on the 2nd of September 2020.

The Australian Capital Territory Government under the Next Generation Energy Storage program provides a rebate of $825 per kilowatt (kW). An average household with a 5 kW system would be eligible for approximately $4,000.

Read more product reviews from Solar Choice

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 Sykes

Reviews from Australians who have installed LG Chem Batteries

Rated 3.10 from 10 reviews
14th April 2024
Neville
-
10kW system
3.00

Replace after a couple of years service due to swelling and the fear of the battery catching fire is unrelenting.

9th April 2024
NSW - 2119
7kW system
5.00

Battery was replaced under a recall program due to potential fire hazard. The replacement process was seamless. Up until then the battery had performed as expected and the replacement battery has continued to do so

8th April 2024
Klaus
ACT - 2602
9kW system
4.00

We have had one recall already. A big drawback of this battery is that it can only accept and discharge a maximum of 5Kw, no matter how big your inverter is. A Tesla battery accepts and discharges 10KW.

13th February 2024
NSW - 2460
6kW system
3.00

The price point was great being a run out model and smaller 6.4kwh. however it's not enough to run a household of 2 people especially with he limited output. But to their credit LG has been great to deal with, we had a warranty issue which was very smooth. Then we have been notified by them of every time there is a recall. However so far ours has not had recall work

7th February 2024
Brett
QLD - 4655
system
1.00

A company installed a battery system that was supposed to run 6kw on power outage. It consisted of an LG 12 kw something battery, and a sungrow inverter. When power went out (inconsistent results here) it would start the inverter to battery mode as expected, then it would register the house load as something like 400w, but then the battery feed in would skyrocket past that 400w and it would often hit 500w then give an over supply warning. The LG battery was never considered the culprit. I complained and forwarded the logs, the installer came out twice and could not replicate, ignored the logs and left. Sungrow tried to tell me my backup circuit was to blame being too big.. I pointed to the video of 400w, certainly to spec. Turns out also the inverter can only supply less than 4kw in power out. Sungrow replaced their inverter and the problem persisted. The installer tried to escape claiming out of warranty after 12 months, we threatened court action, they ended up removing the system leaving stuff behind stuck to our outside wall, and we got most of our money back on the install. MOST. How stupid do you have to be to not understand oversupply, and NOT see the battery inverter incompatibility/ non communication to get the battery supplying TOO much power to the inverter ? How can that be related to the length of cable on the backup circuit (5 br home). We clearly stated our needs, they supplied and stuffed up repeatedly. They also left roof tiles misplaced so we had roof leaks and water damage which they did not remedy. All up, the installers nor Sungrow staff understand basic electrical physics, flow, resistance, capacitance, or understand what OVER SUPPLY means even when it is filmed on the LCD pannel and shown to them. They tried over and over to say it was OUR FAULT. Many installers refuse to use LG battery systems now as this is apparantly not uncommon. Yet these two things are still sold in tandem and Sungrow are still running unchecked gaslighting and bullying their way through the solar marketplace. Disgusting. Installers must be accountable for their false promises. Just because THEY misunderstand the technology and capability, does not mean it passes onto the customer. That is misrepresentation and is automatically a breech of contract. It is also a breech of the trade practices act, fair trading and so forth. This entire industry is corrupt and full of cowboys who have zero clue what they are doing. They also tried to install the sungrow battery INSIDE out house. Imagine how much gas and explosive potential in 12kw of lithium battery power and how fast you would die if that caught fire or simply gassed ? Sheesh.

9th January 2024
James
VIC - 3930
6kW system
4.00

Works. Wish there were more options for user settings. Can only function via the GoodWe BMS. Not very user friendly.

29th September 2023
Terry
-
7kW system
5.00

Works well so far.

12th August 2023
Gengis
VIC - 3500
5kW system
2.00

Battery looks ok but l got a 10Kw one and it still goes flat soon after sunset. They cost so much but don't deliver the goods compared to their price

15th July 2023
Sue
ACT - 2604
7kW system
3.00

Our battery was part of a recall and free replacement program we were notified about in June 2021.The operation of the battery was adjusted remotely to avoid overheating. So we did not get the full advantage of the system for over 12 months, until it was replaced in September,2022. They did offer electricity bill compensation which was appreciated. But communication from LG was poor. From the time of notification that the battery was faulty we did not hear anything for 12 months and that was only because I rang them. All is good now.

17th January 2023
Sanjay
VIC - 3105
10kW system
1.00

Highly disappointed

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *