Choose a virtual or physical battery?

The rise in energy prices has generated a huge interest in photovoltaic power plants and the associated possibilities of using 100% of the green energy produced. It is not always possible to consume all the energy produced directly instead of consuming it.

The best way to use excess solar energy is to store it and consume it later. Currently, two options are available - virtual and physical batteries. What is the difference between them and what do they offer?

What is a virtual battery?
A virtual battery is a battery that does not physically exist. Your excess solar energy automatically "flows" through your smart meter back to the grid. The electricity supplier, as the provider of the virtual battery service, tracks these flows through online data from the smart meter and records them in their business systems.

"However, the 'stored' solar electricity is physically merged with the other electricity in the grid after passing through the smart meter and is almost immediately consumed by other electricity consumers. There is therefore only a billing record of it.

Charges for storing surpluses
Storing solar surplus in a virtual battery usually costs you nothing, but once you want to consume it, you pay all distribution charges except for the electricity itself, called power electricity.

Since these charges make up about 67% of the total electricity price for households and 58% for businesses, it's like buying the stored electricity at a 33% discount (for households) or 42% discount (for businesses).

On the other hand, there's the supplier who gets free solar power from you and charges you a monthly fee for a virtual battery.

The virtual battery service had and still has a strong media campaign. So it is pretty much the #1 choice for PV owners. Electricity suppliers, however, make a lot of money from this service. Sometimes perhaps more than the PV owners themselves. Especially at this time of year, when the price of electricity, and therefore solar surplus, is high, but suppliers still provide "cheap", pre-purchased electricity.

If you want to make more money on surplus without having to install other technologies, look for opportunities to buy solar surplus based on current electricity prices.

What is a physical battery?
A physical battery is installed at the site of solar power generation, near the utility box. It is usually used to store excess solar energy or nighttime energy. The payback was not very attractive due to the high purchase price, but this is no longer the case with today's energy prices.

The advantages of a physical battery include only a one-time investment in its acquisition, no additional monthly fees. However, even this investment can be significantly reduced thanks to the subsidies that often apply to the purchase of an ESS (energy storage system). You can even make a profit with a physical battery - by providing regulatory services to stabilize the grid.

In addition, the battery can serve as a backup power source in the event of a power outage.

Battery systems in our offer
Our company Green Energy Trading has a wide range of battery systems from world leading manufacturers such as KSTAR, SolaX, Dyness, GoodWe and others.

We will be happy to send you a personalized offer tailored directly to your needs. Do not hesitate to contact us.