10/09/2022
Let’s dive deep into battery storage – what is it and how does it work❓
☝️ Simply put, battery storage, or battery energy storage systems (BESS), are devices that 𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀, 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿, 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗹𝘀.
Lithium-ion batteries, which are used in mobile phones and electric cars, are currently the dominant storage technology for large scale plants to help electricity grids ensure a reliable supply of renewable energy.
Battery storage technology has a key part to play in ensuring homes and businesses can be powered by green energy, even when the sun isn’t shinning. 𝗜𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴.
A typical home with solar sends any electricity that is not used by the home out to the grid. In return, the household gets paid a feed-in tariff from the electricity retailer, which is far less then what you buy it back for when you actually need it.
𝗢𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗱𝗱 𝗮 𝗯𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗹𝘀, 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗱, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆.
You can then use this power when your solar panels are not generating electricity, allowing you to buy much less electricity overall from the grid. The below diagram provides an overview of the process.
So now you might be thinking, ‘Okay, this is what battery storage does. Why should I add one in my current system then?’ 🤔
So stay tuned for next weeks discussion to dive deeper into battery storage and why this may be a good option for you!
