Who should consider adding energy storage to a commercial building?

This guide is intended for anyone investigating the addition of energy storage to a single or multiple commercial buildings. This could include building energy managers, facility managers, and property managers in a variety of sectors.

Do solar plants provide frequency regulation?

Additionally, the solar plants also provide 30% of the plant’s nameplate capacity for 10 minutes in order to qualify to provide frequency regulation. Below are the needed inputs and analysis required to determine how to properly size energy storage for solar plant stability.

Are energy storage systems safe for commercial buildings?

For all of the technologies listed, as long as appropriate high voltage safety procedures are followed, energy storage systems can be a safe source of power in commercial buildings. For more information on specific technologies, please see the DOE/EPRI Electricity Storage Handbook available at:

Can a fixed amount of solar PV provide more firm capacity?

Said another way, with a fixed amount of solar PV (if you are land-constrained, for example), you can provide more firm capacity with the same amount of storage if you are willing to charge from the grid sometimes [see Figure 1]. Figure 1. Solar capacity, in MW, required to create a 100 MW renewable peaker.

How can solar storage be optimally sized?

The key to optimally sizing the storage system probabilistically is understanding the tradeoff between marginal cost of additional solar or storage and the penalty for being unavailable to meet a peak in a rare situation.

How much energy does a solar plant need in Puerto Rico?

For example, in Puerto Rico new solar plants must have enough energy storage to cover 45% of the plant’s nameplate capacity for one minute. Additionally, the solar plants also provide 30% of the plant’s nameplate capacity for 10 minutes in order to qualify to provide frequency regulation.