Altech targets battery back-up for Europe’s sprawling gas pipeline

• Altech Batteries launches safe, drop-in 15kWh sodium nickel chloride UPS battery system for Europe’s gas pipeline infrastructure
• New batteries eliminate fire risk, hydrogen emissions and maintenance issues plaguing current lead-acid systems
• Market opportunity spans tens of thousands of ageing pipeline battery replacements across Europe over the next decade

Special Report: Altech Batteries has – in partnership with AMPower – launched a new 15-kilowatt-hour sodium nickel chloride uninterruptible power supply battery system for Europe’s gas and hydrogen pipeline infrastructure.

Gas pipelines support Europe’s energy system, carrying potentially explosive natural gas at high pressure and monitored by control stations, compressors, valves, and safety systems.

Every component in this chain depends on UPS systems to ensure that safety equipment, emergency lighting, fire and gas detection, communication systems, and critical control systems continue to function under all circumstances – including grid outages or external shocks.

While the industry has thus far relied on lead-acid and nickel-cadmium batteries to ensure back-up power for these UPS installations, both chemistries have major drawbacks.

Lead-acid batteries suffer from limited lifespan, hydrogen gas emissions, frequent maintenance, and sudden failure risk while nickel-cadmium is costly, environmentally hazardous, and requires dedicated cooling and housing.

Lithium-ion batteries have also been banned from these zones – presumably due to the fire risk involved.

It is against this background that Altech Batteries (ASX:ATC) and AMPower have launched their design for a sodium nickel chloride battery system that can be dropped in to directly replace existing lead-acid systems.

These systems are fire and explosion proof, maintenance-free, have no hydrogen emissions and do not require ventilation systems or external cooling equipment.

“This launch represents a pivotal moment for Altech as we deliver a safe and practical energy solution into one of Europe’s most sensitive sectors,” ATC managing director Iggy Tan said.

“Gas pipeline infrastructure demands absolute reliability and explosion-proof technology.

“Our new 384V/15kWh UPS battery not only meets these demands – it exceeds them, offering operators a true drop-in replacement for lead-acid and nickel-cadmium systems.

“We are proud to partner with AMPower on this breakthrough, and with the first order already secured, we anticipate strong and rapid adoption across Europe.”

Sodium nickel chloride batteries

The new ATC-AMPower UPS battery has been designed from the ground up with explosive environments in mind.

Notably, the core sodium nickel chloride chemistry contains no flammable liquid electrolytes like lithium-ion batteries do, nor do they emit hydrogen or toxic vapours during operation.

Each unit is a sealed, pressure-tight system that doesn’t need cooling systems or ventilation, a major advantage in areas where explosive gases or combustible dusts may be present.

Eliminating the need for specialised housings, air conditioning, or hydrogen venting infrastructure simplifies the certification process whilst reducing both capex and opex.

Adding interest, the batteries are capable of operating under extreme conditions with a temperature range of between -20 degrees and +60 degrees Celsius, allowing them to operate in arctic cold, desert heat, or in confined compressor stations that often lack climate control.

These advantages are why sodium nickel chloride has been the chemistry of choice for the telecoms sector – though this is the first time the technology has been optimised for large-scale European pipeline infrastructure.

Each system consists of three 136-volt SNC modules connected in series, producing a combined nominal voltage of 384 volts of direct current, which make them perfectly aligned with standard pipeline UPS requirements across Europe.

Their 15kWh capacity is also sufficient for long-duration redundancy and full back-up of critical systems while the 5000 charge and discharge cycles allow for service life exceeding 15 years.

Watch: Altech to sell sodium nickel batteries through AMPower deal

Market opportunity

Europe’s vast pipeline network is ageing, with control stations, valve nodes, and compressor plants all relying on UPS banks that were installed 10-20 years ago.

Most of these use lead-acid batteries are now failing or require costly maintenance, presenting ATC and AMPower with the perfect opportunity to replace such systems using their drop and play systems which offer faster deployment and reduced engineering downtime.

With analysts forecasting the need for tens of thousands of battery replacements across Europe in the next decade, this is a significant market opportunity for the two companies.

ATC’s chief UPS back-up systems engineer Arnoud Blijleven had led the team which developed the system and will oversee extreme-condition testing to ensure CE/IEC compliance whilst maintaining alignment with customer needs.

For AMPower – the world’s largest producer of sodium nickel chloride batteries – the systems are a natural extension of its production expertise.

It currently operates at 100 megawatt-hours per annum, with capacity scalable to 200MWh.

This article was developed in collaboration with Altech Batteries, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.