REGINA ROME
Solar Digital Squad
Manila, Philippines
January 13, 2019
Do you need batteries for Solar?
Not necessarily, since there is Net Metering, where the utility readily gets the excess energy from solar installations and credits you for it — like a virtual battery. For the most part, however, our clients in the Philipines want solar panels for bill reduction purposes and to maximize investments. In such instances, the solar power system does NOT need a battery.
We do, however, have some discerning clients who want the redundancy and the reliability of instant backup power that a battery can provide during power outages. They also want to maximize excess solar harvest by storing them in batteries for evening consumption.
Lithium Batteries are part of our technological toolbox as we have clients who ask for their capabilities. Batteries are needed if you need your solar setup to run during a power outage. Batteries provide a buffer when the sun is not enough and loads have to be supplied with sustained energy. Starting to get common in upscale households who are building new homes without a diesel generator and having things backed up with a Mega Solaric UPS.
At Solaric, we have installed hundreds of setups with batteries for consumers and even fulfilled military contracts around the world with our battery tech. Yeah, we put batteries in systems that were not allowed to go down like RADAR or mission-critical communication systems. Our stuff is way beyond slapping a few Tesla power walls. We design custom systems that can run entire islands or radar facilities perpetually with no diesel, oil, or even grid.
For residential jobs, we have been putting out Lithium based batteries since 2016. Now we are introducing the SMILE Lithium battery hybrid system: a European design award winner and very popular in countries where the government actually pays the consumer to put in batteries to help manage the grid. It works like our regular grid-tie system but with a twist — a smart system that detects if there is excess power and diverts it proportionately to battery charging, before selling it to the utility for a discount. It also detects if the entire house is starting to use grid power and proportionately discharges the battery keeping grid power consumption to zero until the batteries run out. In times of calamities or power outages, it can supply a steady 5000w of critical loads until the batteries run out, and gets recharged by the sun the next day. It’s actually quite beneficial and self-sustaining if one only puts the essentials such as lights, fans, refrigerators, Wi-Fi on the always powered circuit.
We designed the system to be modular, battery capacities can be added by paralleling 5.7 kWh modules at a time and maxing out 15 kWh per inverter — or the capability to store 75% of a day’s sun harvest for brownout or peak time evening use.
These solar panels in the Philippines are installed and requested by those who are serious about planning for major earthquakes, typhoons, or dealing with areas with poor power availability.
Our lithium battery systems are not cheap, but they have a ten-year warranty on the battery components and are really milestones ahead in the market. We would also have to assess properly and ask some detailed questions about your appliances, budget, expectations, and the like.
Battery-based systems are more complex beasts. They cost about 40% to 70% more than our popular battery-less grid-tie systems. Yes, there is a price for peace — the price of having power in your house after a major storm, of having power during a blackout or earthquake. That in itself is priceless for most.
For more information on solar power systems and solar panel prices, click here.
For more information, please visit www.solaric.com.ph or email us at info@solaric.com.ph call 5040092 or 09178603141.
We will gladly explain to you how the system works, or schedule a survey, so we can give you options for your new home or existing homes or businesses.
At Solaric we Turn on the Sun.
Solaric is the leader in rooftop solar
Solaric has established its name across the renewable industry as a proven and reputable rooftop solar leader. Solaric has installed more than 50% of residential rooftop solar in the Philippines and has delivered significant cost reductions in electricity expenses, as well as milestone contributions to a cleaner, greener, and renewable future. Solaric is now zoning in on corporate and industrial projects to offer them the same cost reductions. Welcome to the new generation of solar and turning on the sun.
Regina Rome is a solar analyst with the Solar Digital Squad Research.