Pakistan’s national grid is incredibly unreliable and poses a host of problems for its residents. Coupled with the constant increase in tariffs and multiple problems with the transmission infrastructure, the time is ripe for solar energy to solve the tumultuous grid issue and allow people access to reliable and clean energy that powers their homes and offices without the worry of utility bills. Solar energy systems come in three different configurations that all help with the bills and the consumption of energy, but it is the battery setups that can help you go a long way with your solar energy savings. Let’s look at whether this combination of solar+ storage in the form of batteries can help the people enjoy an alternative from the pesky grid.
For the best solar solutions designed to give you maximum efficiency and access to reliable energy, Beacon Energy offers state-of-the-art smart solar solutions that will not only keep you from the troublesome grid, but also provide you relief from the oppressive energy tariffs. Let’s start by looking at the solar+ storage equation.
Which solar energy system configurations provide battery storage?
There are three configurations for solar energy solutions: on-grid, off-grid and hybrid. These three all provide different advantages and disadvantages, but for the purpose of understanding what each brings to the table in terms of storage, let us take a quick look at how each configuration can perform with respect to an unreliable grid like Pakistan’s.
On-grid systems:
On-grid systems do not provide battery storage options, since the solar energy system essentially works in tandem with the grid to provide energy to the household or the office. In this case, should the grid get knocked out or during blackouts, the solar energy system won’t be able to provide energy since the inverter is configured to provide the energy in tandem with the grid.
Off-grid systems:
Off—grid systems, as their name implies, require no intervention from the grid at all, and instead utilize the energy generated from the solar panels solely. They use an extensive setup of high-capacity batteries and a high-efficiency solar inverter to utilize this energy, and power entire premises without any input from the grid at all. As one can imagine, off-grid systems are the most considerable users of battery energy, and the bigger the setup to energise, the heavier and more durable the batteries need to be. This means that on paper, an off-grid solar energy system can be a better choice for energy reliability where a grid might not be feasible at all.
Hybrid systems:
Hybrid solar energy solutions represent the best of both worlds. They utilize the power from the grid, but also boast an extensive battery setup that helps hybrid systems give the consumer complete energy reliability. In a hybrid system, unlike the on-grid setup, the system is configured to run on solar alone in the event of a grid breakdown, and like off-grid systems, the batteries can be stacked to give the consumer an extensive storage capacity. Should the grid fail, the hybrid system can (under the right circumstances and load requirements) act as an off-grid system to completely energise the premises without any input from the grid at all.
How can this configuration solve the issue of grid reliability?
The configuration that includes battery as a backup source of energy is a utilitarian concept that can be utilized in places where the grid might be unreliable or might not be able to provide a steady source of energy for home or office usage. As such, sizeable batteries that are able to store the required energy are necessary, but so are high-output and extremely efficient solar panels that are able to generate these levels of energy without any issue. In the case of Pakistan specifically, the best system that essentially does away with the unreliability of the grid is a hybrid solar energy solution. Since off-grid systems can end up costing too much and despite the fact that Pakistan’s grid isn’t reliable, it certainly has a structure that allows it to be useful for a considerable part of the day. Hybrid systems boast the best of both worlds, which is why, in Pakistan, a solar +storage setup in the form of a hybrid solar solution is your best bet against an unreliable grid.
Beacon Energy: Solutions for the 21st century energy consumer!
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