Peak shaving is focused on reducing the demand charge (kW) portion of a building’s utility bill. With peak shaving, the battery is charged during periods of low demand (overnight, troughs in the day) and discharged during periods of high demand when the monthly peak consumption could be set. Given the anticipated cycling, duration and power needs of peak shaving, energy storage is very effective. The higher the peak related to the duration of the peak, the better the energy storage economics.
Load shifting is similar to peak shaving but is focused on reducing the kWh costs on a utility bill, and effectively captures the difference between buying energy at low prices and discharging at higher prices. Load shifting typically provides incremental value to a system that is providing other functionality like peak shaving.
Demand response goes beyond saving money to making money. By reducing power from the grid during periods of peak demand, customers can participate in incentive programs.
Energy storage systems have proven to be a great asset to support frequency regulation (FR). FR is a service that can be provided by buildings to support the grid as it tries to balance supply and demand and maintain frequency. Battery systems are well suited as they are able to either absorb excess power or contribute power quickly to help balance frequency.
Batteries play a key role in improving the resiliency of buildings as they can serve as a bridge from carbon-based generation to renewable energy generation and can act quickly if there is a loss of power. Storage paired with renewable energy sources provides firmness to the renewable energy capacity and can also increase resiliency.
Energy storage can serve as a reliable source of backup power in case there is loss of power from the grid due to severe weather conditions or other issues. By helping facilities remain operational, our energy storage systems help our customers eliminate costs of downtime.
Facility load power factor can cause power quality issues. Often demand charges are related to facility loads with low power factor, when a higher cost is paid for lower power factor. An energy storage system can improve the facility power factor, improve power quality and save money on utility bills.
