LOVE AND HATE AND SOLAR AND THE GRID

Solar Energy: Grid vs. Battery Storage

Anastasia Pantsios, April 7, 2015 (EcoWatch)

“As solar power—both giant farms and small rooftop installations—enjoys tremendous growth across the U.S., there’s been pushback from big utility companies. They’ve campaigned to end net metering, in which solar panel owners can return unneeded power they’ve generated to the grid for credit, and to add fees to their bills, calling homeowners and small businesses with rooftop panels ‘free riders’ who don’t contribute to the upkeep of the grid…But is there a possibility that both solar panel owners and utility companies could benefit from the increased deployment of solar? The Rocky Mountain Institute’s The Economics of Load Defection…speculates about the potential economic impact of customers with smaller and less costly solar panel/storage battery systems that [might decrease but not] eliminate dependence on the grid…Projecting through 2050, the report looked at the economics of three configurations in five cities—Los Angeles, Honolulu, San Antonio, Louisville, KY and Westchester, NY…[T]he most economical system for the customer evolves over time from grid-only, to grid-plus-solar, to grid-plus-solar-plus-battery…[S]ystems that included battery storage would be economical in three of the cities within 10-15 years…[and] regardless of whether the system included the storage battery, customers’ reliance on energy from the grid decreases over time, especially as the cost of electricity from the grid increases and solar and battery costs decrease…” click here for more

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