Eskom’s ageing fleet of power stations has plagued the power utility and the country for years. Are battery energy storage systems the answer?
The sharp increase in the number of load-shedding days since 2018 highlights the challenges that Eskom faces: a constrained power system with an old, unreliable and poorly maintained generation fleet as well as the need for new generation capacity.
As a result, the risk of load-shedding — and unplanned power outages — will remain until substantial new power capacity is invested in. These risks are compounded by the steep increases in electricity tariffs by Eskom and municipalities.
That is why a growing number of business owners are exploring the option of installing renewable energy technologies such as solar photovoltaic (PV) systems to power their daily operations.
The decline in prices of the batteries required to run these systems, in this case lithium-ion, as well as their benefits in times of load-shedding, have made for a stronger business case.
Investing in battery energy storage systems (BESS)
As a power storage system, BESS are practical because they can be used in many different applications independent of location in contrast to, for example, pumped hydro storage.
The type of BESS application needs to be aligned with the right BESS technology to maximise value for business owners.
The challenge with solar PV systems is that resource availability (in other words sunshine) does not always coincide with demand. BESS allow businesses to make the most of this excess PV energy by saving it for later use.
Given the declining costs of the technology and increasing energy costs, our abundant sunlight availability and the long lifespan of the technology, the business case is increasingly attractive.