A clearer road ahead

VENDOR VIEW I STUDER INNOTECH
Solar priority:
When solar prevails over the grid
Traditionally the solar market has been split into
two main segments: the « on grid », where solar
current is fed into the grid and the « off grid »,
where solar current is stored in a battery to be
used whenever needed. In recent years these two
applications are becoming more and more
frequently used to complement each other by
combining the public grid, a solar generator and a
battery inverter system. In such a system it is
possible to give priority to consumption of solar
energy, either for financial or for economic
reasons.
In Germany, there are financial incentives to
primarily use one’s own solar production which
has led to the creation of a new market called «
self-consumption ». Other countries are heading in
the same direction by, for instance, introducing net
metering schemes. In many developing countries
solar energy is more economical to use as it is
cheaper than power from the grid, making a mix of
grid power and solar energy an ideal system.
Indeed, solar energy does not need an initial bulk
investment as the grid can complement it, and the
solar part can be upgraded as per the financial
capacities of the owner. In addition, the battery
inverter system provides backup of the installation
in case of power outage.
There are different ways to implement the solar selfconsumption
or simply said the “solar priority”.
Swiss inverter manufacturer Studer Innotec SA can
with simple programming offer the solar priority
function by setting a certain battery voltage above
which the solar current stored in the battery will be
used in priority over the grid. This feature is
provided by all models of the Xtender series and is
described in the application note « Optimal Solar
Backup» available to download from Studer
Innotec’s website www.studer-innotec.com
40 www.solar-international.net I Issue IX 2012