After a successful crowdfunding campaign, the Achterhoek startup CHARGED, founded by Twan Vooijs, HAN alumnus Electrical and Electronic Engineering and director Roeland Nagel, has started production of the first Dutch-made home battery: the Sessy.

Smart software

Both techies are keen to contribute to the energy transition. With smart software, this Sessy ensures that solar panel owners use more of their own solar power and that people with dynamic energy contracts can even earn money with their home battery.

Twan: “In my parents’ garage in Zetten, CHARGED started our home battery. With four desks and a whole garage full of stuff. We stored excess solar energy in the battery and used it to cook at night, watch television, run the heat pump partly on it, lighting, CO2 savings and money.”

Roeland Nagel explains that he and partners have invested years in gaining knowledge. “Apart from the hardware, we think the smart software is also important. That ensures that the battery will charge and discharge at the right times, so that it keeps zero on the meter at people’s homes or can save maximum money.”

Surplus solar energy

Meanwhile, at a factory warehouse in Andelst, the home batteries are being made to store surplus solar energy in them. The home battery can be bought for €3,250 and CHARGED has already sold a thousand batteries to consumers.

Help for every household

Many companies get their batteries from abroad and CHARGED will now produce them in Gelderland. This is unique even for the Netherlands! This is also confirmed by HAN researcher Joke Westra of the Lectorate Balanced Energy Systems in this news broadcast on TV Gelderland: “It’s not going to solve the whole energy transition, but it can start helping every household.” Although material scarcity is a challenge. Joke: “There are not enough materials in the world to make batteries for everyone.”

Twan’s response: “There are no conflict minerals like cobalt and manganese in our batteries. We are going to make that – if all goes well – a lot easier.”

Source and photography: Omroep Gelderland, HAN