The need for Solar Generation Management

Solar energy is very popular in Australia and its installation on both small (regional) and large (metropolitan) grid systems is rapidly increasing. However, the erratic nature of solar generation causes problems for the grid and more installations result in more power disturbance.

For example, when clouds cover the sun, the amount of electricity the (solar using) homes generate will drop suddenly, causing this loss to be compensated by the grid. This loss may not be significant for a large, strong grid but it is for a small (weaker) grid.

When this happens en mass the loss of electricity may be too sharp for the grid to cope with, resulting in too much demand on the network - thus causing reliability problems.

The first utility to respond to this problem was the Western Australian regional grid power supplier Horizon Power which mandated that all new solar installations using its grid be equipped with technology to smooth the transition of renewable energy, and give time for diesel generators to operate.

Solutions: The Solar Smoother

In response to the challenge of passing clouds, since 2013 Magellan Power has been designing and manufacturing a range of battery based Solar Smoothers using both Lead Acid and Lithium batteries to suit various applications. This equipment can be described as a "reactive solution" to the problem as it "reacts" to the reduction of the solar generation by injecting battery power (in accordance with Horizon Power generation management specification) into the load to compensate for the loss of solar power.

Magellan supplies two Solar Smoothers, Single Phase and Three Phase.