Having the ability to store grid or renewable energy in a battery energy storage system (BESS) greatly increases site flexibility, which offers a number of benefits. Here’s a look at some of the ways having stored electricity in batteries can improve your site operations and overall business.
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Cost-effective charging
Power from the grid costs more at some times than others. With a battery, you can store utility electricity when it’s less expensive and discharge the power to your EV charging site when prices go up. Strategically moving around when you’re using grid energy in light of utility time-of-use rates can help you better manage electricity expenses.
Increased profits
Demand charges are typically based on your highest level of grid use during a billing period. Switching to using battery power when you’re getting close to your grid limit can lower your peak level of grid demand. Using your resources more efficiently helps avoid utility charges, reducing operating costs and improving the profitability of your charging network over time.
Higher customers throughput
When you don’t have enough available grid energy to supply your site loads, your BESS can provide a boost to generate the extra electricity you need. The ability to supplement grid power and maintain reliable charging where your capacity is limited allows more customers to charge up quicker without making expensive infrastructure upgrades.
Cheap, clean energy
Charging your battery with solar power offers a cost-effective alternative when the price of grid electricity peaks. Batteries coupled with renewables can also increase the resiliency of your site by islanding (disconnecting from the grid) through grid outages. Plus, powering EVs with renewables demonstrates your commitment to environmental responsibility, which resonates with environmentally conscious EV users.
While adding a battery to your EV charging site offers many potential benefits, a good energy management system (EMS) is key to getting the most value from your storage system. An EMS can automatically optimize your battery charging and discharging based on varying time-of-use rates, perform peak shaving in light of your grid limit, and align grid conditions with your electrical load to maintain cost-effective and reliable charging.
The SparkCore™ automatically signals the battery energy storage system to discharge once a site’s grid limit is passed to avoid utility charges.
Sparkion is an expert in energy storage, with roots in battery hardware. Our vast experience with and deep understanding of electrical infrastructure allowed us to design the SparkCore ™, a better EMS including software and controller. Our product provides the most value when a battery is onsite, ensuring that all site assets work together optimally with the grid for 100% system uptime and maximum revenue.
