Onsite renewables and battery storage go hand-in-hand when it comes to realising the full potential of distributed energy to reduce costs and increase energy security. The good news is that access to both is easier than ever.
Onsite generation technologies, such as solar and wind, are increasingly attractive to businesses thanks to innovative funding models via Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). Rooftop solar for example, can be rapidly installed with no upfront costs, meaning businesses can achieve savings in a matter of weeks. Battery storage can be deployed simultaneously through the same PPA funding model – particularly important as businesses face rising prices and competition.
The commercial case for onsite batteries is also helped by new rules that enable flexibility from distributed energy resources to be traded in the wholesale market. P415 is a modification to the UK’s Balancing and Settlement Code (BSC) that enables onsite battery storage to participate more actively in the wholesale energy market via Virtual Trading Parties (VTPs) without the need for trades to go through the supplier with the potential to provide further savings. While the rules are still to be refined later this year, we will be exploring how this capability might benefit businesses with batteries and solar panels in the future.
As technology advances further, the cost of both renewables and battery storage is falling fast. In fact, the cost of battery energy storage has dropped by 50% over the past 12 to 18 months, significantly boosting the business case for combining battery storage with solar to reduce energy costs, reliance on the grid and exposure to price shocks, all whilst strengthening energy resilience.
Battery storage and renewable assets are subject to stringent safety regulations, and all require ongoing monitoring and maintenance throughout their lifetime. For AMPYR Distributed Energy, this involves working with selected battery manufacturers to ensure confidence in safety performance, as well as setting robust installation standards in line with best practice and insurance requirements. Ongoing monitoring and maintenance can be rolled into the PPA, delivering peace of mind, reinforcing safety and security compliance around assets, and ensuring all systems are operating at optimal performance.
The appetite for clean energy is not just underpinned by environmental concerns, it acknowledges the need to deliver greater energy security and independence. Ultimately, businesses that can take advantage of onsite renewables will be able to reduce energy costs and build greater energy resilience. More broadly, the deployment of onsite solar and storage will create an efficient, decentralised energy system that can help protect customers from periods of extreme volatility of the kind seen increasingly over recent years.
For more information about how we can help your business power its energy transition, contact us today.