Battery storage is one of the pricier home energy upgrades, and renters are often excluded from it. Octopus Energy says it wants to broaden access with a shoebox-sized battery for tenants, alongside a larger home system for owners looking for an alternative to the Tesla Powerwall.
What happened?
Octopus Energy used its recent Energy Tech Summit to introduce Nook, a battery range that is designed with both renters and homeowners in mind.
According to TechRadar, the new products are the Octopus Nook Cube — a 2-kilowatt-hour unit that plugs into a regular wall outlet — and the Octopus Nook Colossus, a wall-mounted battery offered in 5-kWh and 10-kWh sizes.
Because it plugs in rather than requiring a more permanent setup, the Cube could remove one of the main barriers renters face to home energy technology. TechRadar said Octopus plans to let customers expand capacity, using its app to add more Cube units until they reach 10.5 kWh.
The homeowner model can also be expanded: multiple Colossus units can be combined for up to 30 kWh of storage, putting it in direct competition with larger home battery systems already on the market.
Octopus says both batteries can work with existing solar panels, and each comes with a 12-year warranty. TechRadar reported that the company expects to start sales next year in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain, meaning buyers will likely not see them before 2027.
TCD Picks » EDF Spotlight
💡EDF's Vital Signs newsletter delivers stories about game-changing solutions close to home and around the world
Why does it matter?
The appeal of a home battery lies in timing: it lets households store electricity when rates are cheaper and use it later when energy prices rise. For people dealing with unpredictable utility bills, that can mean more control over when electricity is used and how much it costs.
TechRadar cited Octopus as saying that customers on its smart tariffs have already collectively saved around $1.3 billion on energy costs, suggesting that batteries paired with time-based pricing could reduce bills even further.
A plug-in battery could make storage more realistic for tenants, who often are not allowed to make permanent changes to where they live. By eliminating the need for engineer-led installation, the renter model lowers that barrier.
For people with solar panels, batteries can also help capture more of that energy for use after sunset instead of sending it away unused.
What are people saying?
Greg Jackson, Founder and CEO of Octopus Energy Group, said, "Home batteries are a brilliant piece of tech and one of the smartest ways to cut energy bills right now." He added: "Offering Octopus batteries to our customers is a big step in our mission to help people to tap into the cheapest energy possible."
TechRadar characterized the Colossus as "a genuine rival to Tesla's Powerwall lineup."
Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here.
