With many solar companies getting involved in storage projects, it is crucial that the project team understands the differences between the two technologies. Good project managers use their previous solar experience to anticipate risks that could derail their commercial solar-plus-storage budgets and schedules. Flux Energy Systems team has worked on hundreds of solar projects and dozens of battery projects. Through that work, we have identified how key differences in the technology shape critical project decisions.
Power vs Energy
Both solar and battery projects make energy. When designing a solar project, a designer has some ability to impact the energy production of a solar project (e.g., changing the AC to DC ratio, module tilt, or MPPT optimization), but ultimately the sun and the weather determine how much energy will be generated. That’s why the solar industry sizes systems by their name plate power (MW) rather than their energy (MWh). Battery energy capacity, on the other hand, is entirely dependent on the quantity of batteries purchased, while power is defined by both the battery and the inverter. The more battery packs in parallel, the more energy stored. Since the energy capacity defines many of the rebates, financing programs, and customer expectations, the project manager should understand the relationship between power and energy.
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Should you have any questions or want support on your first solar plus storage project, reach out to the team at Flux Energy Systems. We love working with companies who are ramping up new offerings in the energy industry. Let us help you avoid some costly and time consuming mistakes.
Come back next week for to read more tips on managing Energy Storage Projects in a blog post written by our Project Manager, Jaydeep Laljani.
