Project 3 – Battery storage

Project 3 – Battery Storage

Planning & Design

We’re working with a large institution based on the South Bank to look at incorporating battery storage into one of their buildings. They have identified a secure area in a basement, but we still need to consider fire risk, heat build-up, and links to roof mounted PV which will be balanced with the batteries using AI.

Cell selection

The next decision will be on selecting the best cells for the storage. A containerised solution won’t work owing to access, so we will need to look at a modular approach, taking into account the results of the risk analysis undertaken at the planning stage. We don’t envisage needing a big yellow digger to gain access to the basement!

Installation & Commissioning

The third stage is to turn theory into practice. How ling will it take to install the battery modules and then commission them to ensure they are working to specification? We’ll also be bringing in our clever software at this stage, using AI to determine when to store energy and when to release it. To start with, it may simply create flexibility with the with the local distribution network; once we are happy that it’s working as planned we can then start optimising the storage times and capacity in line with the free electricity generated by the associated PV panels.

Monitoring & Verification

There’s no point putting in expensive and innovative technology and then walking away from it, hoping it will work. We’ll be undertaking extensive monitoring and verification of performance, looking for the unexpected and calculating actual savings. We’re confident it will help to cut energy bills, but will the savings justify the cost, and if not, how could we improve the design to achieve this?