South African telecommunications company orders 68 Redflow zinc-bromine flow batteries

Zinc-bromine flow battery developer Redflow (ASX: RFX) has received an order to deploy 68 of its batteries in South Africa for a leading telecommunications company.

The agreement comes after the undisclosed company successfully tested the ZBM2 batteries in a proof of concept trial.

Redflow’s South African partner Mobax will begin deploying the batteries this month, with the batteries expected to power at least 20 mobile phone tower sites and replace existing diesel generators.

Mobax will be responsible for installation and ongoing support for the batteries, which are expected to reduce operational costs.

The batteries will reduce reliance on diesel as well as reduce carbon tax liabilities under South Africa’s new carbon pollution reduction regulations.

“As well as delivering substantial operational expenditure savings, the ZBM2 battery offers many benefits in the South African environment including its long operating life and temperature resilience,” Mobax chief operating officer Maris Van Wyk said.

“We are also confident that the ZBM2 battery, which weighs about 240kg and has no secondary resale value, will be less prone to theft than conventional batteries.”

“These are challenges faced by other telecommunications companies throughout Africa, so we see this as a significant opportunity,” Mr Van Wyk added.

Meanwhile, Redflow managing director Tim Harris pointed out that energy storage for mobile phone towers was a “well-established” global market.

He added it currently faces high operating costs through diesel generators, three-year replacement cycles for lead-acid batteries and battery theft.

“With a 10-year warranty and theft resistant features, our ZBM2 zinc-bromine flow batteries solve these problems, delivering long-life, hard-working energy storage in warm climatic conditions,” Mr Harris explained.

Redflow expects to receive revenue from the order this calendar year, which has a commercial gross margin.

This latest contract builds on a previous one where Redflow sold 32 zinc-bromine flow batteries for remote mobile phone towers in South Africa.

Zinc bromine flow batteries

Redflow produces zinc bromine flow batteries that have the advantage of tolerating harsh environmental conditions including extreme heat.

The battery is designed for high cycle-rate, long time-base stationary energy storage applications across telecommunications, commercial, industrial and residential sectors.

Other advantages in using zinc bromine-flow batteries include 100% daily discharge depth, a simple recycling path, and no propensity for thermal runaway.

By midday, shares in Redflow were up 7.5% to $0.043.