Solar Energy - Renewables
Renewable energy systems are of many types. Of those available and widely used is Solar PV, the most popular & convenient Solar Water Heater system. Solar PV (Photovoltaic) is a technology where a very thin material of silicon cells is combined in a circuit (normally within a glass-surfaced module popularly known as a 'PV module') to generate electricity for usage. In a typical installation, several PV modules are connected in series/parallel to achieve an even greater power range to run conventional electrical systems. Recently in the last decade or so, Solar PV parks became a rage after Governments in various countries offered a much higher buying tariff to promote the switch to cleaner & renewable resources of energy. This naturally saw an upsurge in numerous manufacturers emerging off this opportunity and thus making it widely available and most importantly, economical & easy to adopt.
Popularly there are three types of PV systems that are in use, largely as On-Grid system that operates in conjunction with the local grid that it would be connected with to sell generated power. Next comes the Off-Grid PV system uses battery banks to store energy, and is mostly used in remote/isolated places that are either out of reach of local grid electricity or that may have frequent outages and so need alternative generation systems. However, off-late there is also a third type; the Hybrid PV system, which is a combination of both On-Grid & Off-Grid systems with battery storage units used at unit and utility scales.
Advantages of a Roof Top Solar System
- It produces large amount of solar power during the day.
- Helps in reducing power bills substantially.
- Return excess solar energy produced back to the grid, for credit from your grid electricity supply company.
- Tap into grid-based conventional energy when direct sunlight is not available (at night, or during winter, etc.), or during off-peak hours when conventional electricity rates are low.
- Govt. of India has approved a rebate of 40% for installation up to 3 KW & 20% from 3 KW to 10 KW (for Residential consumers only).
- Interested prosumer can install the Roof Top Solar system from our company.
All these systems use an inverter to convert the DC power from solar PV to usable AC power by devices that are run from the grid.
There are a few different configurations of Solar Energy Solutions, such as;
Grid-Tied (On-Grid) Solar PV
Features
- Simple & Popular
- Gross / Net Metering
- Quicker ROI
- Strong Service Support
- Most Affordable
- Green Building Rating
- Environment Friendly
- Easy Maintenance
- Noiseless & Non-Polluting
- Future proof *
Applications
- Solar Parks
- Commercial Buildings
- Residential Buildings
- Offices / Malls
- Educational Institutions
- Hotels & Resorts
- Industries / Factories
Almost every building that consumes electricity from the grid should have this system installed. The average life of a PV system exceeds 25+ years.
* The grid power will only increase year after year, installing it earliest makes you a winner against inflation. Remember, solar is a performing asset and not a depreciating liability.
The on-Grid system is connected to the grid in parallel and operates only when the grid power is active. When the grid power fails, the PV inverter stops operating and thereby generates no electricity from the PV input. This is however a safety feature for the grid system and is usually used where the grid power is largely consistent. The intention of connecting the local Solar PV system is to earn back the power consumption during non-usage of solar Generation by selling back to the grid using a bi-directional Net-Meter, also popularly known as Net Metering. This is useful for every consumer sector right from, micro, small, medium to large scale power users.
Off-Grid Solar PV (Standalone)
Features
- Simple & Popular
- Local consumption only
- ROI depends on many factors
- Decent Service Support
- Expensive to store Energy
- Environment Friendly
- Battery Storage
- Easy Maintenance
- Noiseless & Non-Polluting
- Peace of Mind
Applications
- Grid Absent Locations
- Farmhouses
- Irrigation Pumps
- Mobile / Radio Towers
- Emergency Power
- Military / Disaster Relief
- Solar Fencing
Regions with intermittent / completely-absent of grid-supplied power, are the most benefitted by off-grid solar systems.
An off-Grid system is a grid isolated system, where the output of the PV is not at all connected in parallel to the grid power (even if it exists). Generally used as backup electricity generation in grid-supplied areas, and as the main source of electricity at places where grid power is absent.
On/Off-Grid Solar PV (Hybrid)
Features
- Advanced System
- Net-Metering & local backup power
- ROI is a little longer
- Good Service Support
- Slightly Expensive
- Green Building Rating
- Environment Friendly
- Moderate Maintenance
- Battery Storage
- Noiseless & Non-Polluting
Applications
- Farmhouses
- Irrigation Pumps
- Grid Unstable Regions
- Mobile / Radio Towers
- Commercial Buildings
- Residential Buildings
- Offices / Malls
- Industries / Factories
A smart choice for everyone who consumes moderate to high electricity in grid-unstable regions can make use of this system to recover the investment quicker & turn profitable. Cheaper alternative compared to running diesel-generators. The average life of a PV system exceeds 25+ years.
Hybrid Grid-Tied Solar PV is a grid-tied parallel power supply system that acts like a traditional Grid-Tied PV system only when the grid power is active, but also as a power backup inverter/UPS. In the case of grid power failure, the Solar Hybrid-Inverter disconnects itself from the power grid and continues to operate as an Off-Grid PV system to power the connected loads. This feature is called 'islanding', meaning during grid-power failure the Solar PV runs by itself within the site it is installed. It normally has a set of battery bank(s) to buffer the generation losses during weather conditions such as clouds and after sunset like a traditional backup inverter/UPS.
This type of PV system is mostly used where the grid power is largely inconsistent but in high demand by the consumer. This is normally demanded by a small group of niche consumers who needs stable electricity for their daily usage and yet get the bargain of selling excess power to the grid to reduce the power bills.
On/Off-Grid Solar Thermal+PV (Hybrid)
Features
- Advanced System
- Net-Metering & local backup power, with Water Heating
- ROI is quicker
- Premium Industry Support
- Slightly Expensive
- Green Building Rating
- Environment Friendly
- Easy Maintenance
- Battery Storage
- Noiseless & Non-Polluting
Applications
- Hotels & Resorts
- Restaurants / Cloud Kitchens
- Residential Buildings
- Industries / Factories
- Grid Unstable Regions
- Industries / Factories
Comprehensive solution; seems expensive but a smart choice for everyone who consumes moderate to high electricity & steam/hot-water should use this system to not only recover the investment quicker & but turn it into profitable in the long run. The average life of a PV system exceeds 25+ years, minus the battery.
Hybrid Grid-Tied Solar Thermal+PV is a grid-tied parallel power supply system that acts like a traditional Grid-Tied PV system only when the grid power is active, similar to the On/Off-Grid Solar system and also integrates the Solar Water Heating. Power 'islanding' is supported, and also adds up to the Water heater.
This type of PV system is mostly used in hotels, restaurants, and cloud/community kitchens where the benefits of both Thermal & PV are taken care of. This helps reduce electricity bills and also is an eco-friendly way to harness the free energy from the sun. Covering the roof with Solar panels also helps reduce air-conditioning usage, as the building will be much cooler.
Agro-Voltaics (Farmtop Solar PV)
Features
- Simple & Popular
- Gross / Net Metering
- Quicker ROI
- Strong Service Support
- Most Affordable
- Green Building Rating
- Environment Friendly
- Easy Maintenance
- Noiseless & Non-Polluting
- Future proof *
Applications
- Farm-based Solar Parks
- Agricultural Buildings
- (Semi) Shade-Crop Farms
- Resorts & Farmstays
- Agricultural Institutions
- On-farm Food-Processing
- Agro-Industries / Factories
Irrelevant whether there is a local consumption of electricity from the grid if the location has the geological advantage of the abundant sunlit time that could be detrimental to the growth of the agricultural crops can have this system installed for added electricity export based earnings. The average life of a PV system exceeds 25+ years.
* The grid power will only increase year after year, installing it earliest makes you a winner against inflation. Remember, solar is a performing asset and not a depreciating liability.
While Rooftop & Ground-mounted installations are a common practice, Agro-Solar is a relatively new concept, where the agricultural land is used to both generate Solar Power, as well as grow crops that demand shaded conditions.
In the case of Agro-Solar, the land utilized for the installation of Solar modules has dual purpose and value. Since arable land is limited compared to total land mass and food is as necessary as energy, it is better to follow the dual-purpose use case to have more than one usability of it.
Solar Thermal (Regular & Concentrated)
Features
- Advanced System
- Net-Metering & local backup power, with Water Heating
- ROI is quicker
- Premium Industry Support
- Slightly Expensive
- Green Building Rating
- Environment Friendly
- Easy Maintenance
- Battery Storage
- Noiseless & Non-Polluting
Applications
- Hotels & Resorts
- Restaurants / Cloud Kitchens
- Residential Buildings
- Industries / Factories
- Grid Unstable Regions
- Industries / Factories
Comprehensive solution; seems expensive but a smart choice for everyone who consumes moderate to high electricity & steam/hot-water should use this system to not only recover the investment quicker & but turn it into profitable in the long run. The average life of a PV system exceeds 25+ years, minus the battery.
Hybrid Grid-Tied Solar Thermal+PV is a grid-tied parallel power supply system that acts like a traditional Grid-Tied PV system only when the grid power is active, similar to the On/Off-Grid Solar system and also integrates the Solar Water Heating. Power 'islanding' is supported, and also adds up to the Water heater.
This type of PV system is mostly used in hotels, restaurants, and cloud/community kitchens where the benefits of both Thermal & PV are taken care of. This helps reduce electricity bills and also is eco-friendly way to harness the free energy from the sun. Covering the roof with Solar panels also helps reduce air-conditioning usage, as the building will be much cooler.