In the current wave of energy transformation, industrial and commercial energy storage power stations are becoming a new favorite for enterprises to save energy, reduce costs, and enhance competitiveness. However, in the face of complex market and technological environments, many companies often have no idea where to start when considering the installation of energy storage power stations, and even fall into misunderstandings during the development process. This article will provide you with a quick method to determine whether a company is suitable for installing industrial and commercial energy storage power stations, and reveal common misconceptions in the development process, helping you avoid detours and achieve more results in energy management!
The rapid development of industrial and commercial energy storage provides a powerful tool for high energy consuming enterprises to reduce costs and increase efficiency, but how to quickly determine whether the enterprise has the installation conditions?
Based on the latest policies and technical specifications in the industry, six core judgment indicators have been extracted, and combined with practical cases and data, an efficient decision-making guide has been provided for business owners and investors.
1、 Electricity consumption analysis
The first threshold of economy
The investment return cycle of industrial and commercial energy storage is directly related to the scale of electricity consumption.
According to industry standards, the annual electricity consumption must reach over 1 million kWh, and the number of days of electricity consumption must remain stable at over 300 days.
Computational logic:
Assuming the energy storage system adopts a 1MW/2MWh configuration, it completes “two charges and two discharges” (valley charging and peak discharge) daily, with a daily discharge capacity of 2000 degrees.
If the monthly average electricity consumption of the enterprise is ≥ 300000 kWh (daily average of 10000 kWh), it can cover the electricity consumption demand of the energy storage system.
For example, a valve factory in Wenzhou, Zhejiang has an annual electricity consumption of 2.8 million kWh. After installing 8 200kWh energy storage cabinets, it saves 20000 yuan in electricity bills per month and has a payback period of 4.2 years.
2、 Transformer margin
The ceiling that determines energy storage capacity
The remaining capacity of the transformer directly affects the charging efficiency of the energy storage system.
Two conditions must be met:
◇ Total capacity ≥ 630kVA
◇ Load rate during valley hours ≤ 70%
Quick verification formula:
Installed energy storage capacity (kW)=(transformer capacity x valley margin ratio) ÷ charging efficiency coefficient
(The coefficient is usually taken as 0.8-0.9)
3、 Electricity pricing policy
The core variables of the revenue model
The price difference between peak and valley is a decisive factor in the economic viability of industrial and commercial energy storage.
The latest policy for 2025 shows:
Price difference threshold: 0.7 yuan/kWh (below which the IRR of the project is less than 10%)
Demand based electricity pricing strategy:
By controlling the maximum demand within 90% of the transformer capacity through energy storage, 30% of the electricity bill can be saved.
4、 Site safety
Hard constraints on fire protection and space
Energy storage equipment has strict requirements for the site.
Must meet:
Space requirements
The 1MW/2MWh system requires a site of 10-12 square meters and a 1.5m fire escape
◇ Distance from building ≥ 4m (otherwise a 3-hour fire-resistant firewall needs to be built)
geological conditions
Ground bearing capacity ≥ 1.5 tons/㎡
◇ Flood control elevation ≥ historical highest water level 0.3m
Failure case: A furniture factory placed energy storage equipment on a slope, but the fire safety inspection failed due to inadequate drainage, resulting in an additional renovation cost of 150000 yuan.
5、 Filing process
The key path to compliance
The national general filing process consists of three steps:
Material preparation: 6 core documents including business license, venue certificate, load data, etc
Platform application: submitted through the “National Investment Project Online Approval and Supervision Platform”
Special approval:
Fire protection design review is required for 500kW and above
Provincial level power grid safety assessment is required for power grids with a capacity of over 20000 kW
6、 Qualification review
Firewall for risk avoidance
Three types of qualifications that must be verified:
Investor: CNAS certified (Energy Storage Industry Access Qualification)
Installation party: License for installing (repairing, testing) electrical facilities
Equipment supplier:
The battery has passed UN38.3 certification
The system complies with the GB 51048 standard
Lesson learned case: A certain enterprise selected an unqualified construction team, but was rejected during grid connection due to incomplete equipment certification, resulting in a rectification loss of 500000 yuan.
7、 Practical scenarios
Solution
Scenario 1: Large factories (annual electricity consumption>5 million kWh)
Plan reference: A certain automobile factory is constructing a 19.7MW/39.4MWh energy storage power station, achieving an average monthly revenue of over 1 million yuan through “peak valley arbitrage+peak shaving auxiliary services”.
Scenario 2: Medium sized enterprises (1-3 million degrees)
Solution optimization: Adopting lithium iron phosphate batteries and intelligent EMS system, with an investment payback period controlled within 4 years. A certain machinery factory in Zhejiang has increased the proportion of non electricity revenue to 15% through the “integrated light storage and charging” model.
8、 Future Trends
Decision-making advice
Technical selection:
Priority should be given to lithium iron phosphate batteries with a cycle life of over 6000 times
◇ Configure AI scheduling algorithms (such as increasing revenue by 15% on the Sunshine Power Platform)
Contract terms:
The EMC model requires a clear profit sharing ratio
◇ Avoid the trap of “guaranteed profits” and require suppliers to provide historical project data
9、 Indicator system
Turn to profit center
The installation decision of industrial and commercial energy storage requires a comprehensive consideration of economic feasibility, technical feasibility, and policy compliance.
Through the above six indicator system, enterprises can make preliminary judgments within 5 minutes, but specific projects still require a professional team to conduct in-depth evaluations such as transformer load curve analysis and electricity price simulation calculation.
With the deepening of electricity marketization reform, energy storage is shifting from a cost center to a profit center, and enterprises that seize the window period will have an advantage in the energy transformation.
10、 Energy storage development
What are the common misconceptions?
Does a higher monthly electricity consumption indicate a higher quality project?
No, when judging whether a company can use energy storage, electricity consumption is not the only measure, and electricity consumption is not the most important value.
Focus on the following values: ① electricity price difference, ② electricity consumption time period, ③ number of operating days, ④ how many charges and discharges are needed
① The electricity price difference should be above 70 cents; ② The electricity usage period should cover the daily electricity peak/rush hour, and cannot be off peak electricity usage;
③ Try to have at least 330 working days per year; ④ It is best to meet the requirement of two charges and two discharges;
All the above conditions must coexist in order to provide energy storage power stations for enterprises.
- As long as there is a difference in electricity prices, can industrial and commercial energy storage be used?
No, the electricity price difference must be at least 70 cents in order to have the opportunity to invest in energy storage projects for enterprises. If the electricity price difference is less than 70 cents, the returns cannot be reversed. In addition to the electricity price difference indicator, there are also factors such as the number of days of operation and the duration of electricity usage that need to be considered.
Can hospitals and schools also work on commercial energy storage?
Not necessarily, first of all, schools cannot do energy storage because the campus is densely populated and minors are difficult to control, making it easy to approach energy storage stations; The second reason is that schools have winter and summer vacations every year, and the number of days they use electricity often does not meet the standard; Also, the type of electricity used by schools may not necessarily meet the requirements of industrial and commercial energy storage, and schools may already enjoy electricity subsidies, so schools do not need to consider it!
Generally, hospitals have a public welfare nature and also receive government subsidies for electricity bills. As for whether it can be done or not, specific calculations need to be made.
- Enterprises cannot install energy storage if they charge on demand
No, charging based on demand does not mean that energy storage cannot be installed. It depends on the company’s operating plan and electricity consumption time, and further calculations need to be made using 15 minutes of load data (continuous for one year) to see if the transformer has enough capacity to charge the energy storage equipment.
Can it be done in industrial parks?
No, the resources in industrial parks depend on the specific situation.
① The property rights, household number, land use, and power consumption entity of the transformer in the park are all the same.
This is also the best case scenario, where the electricity bills of various factories in the park are paid to the entities that belong to the park. Different factories in the park can be understood as tenants in the park, and ultimately, for the power grid and us, the property rights, household numbers, transformers, and the entities that pay the electricity bills are all the same. This type of industrial park is a high-quality resource, but it is often difficult to develop because it is likely to belong to the management committee or government, and the development cycle will be relatively long. The relationships involved are also complex. To develop this type of resource, you need to manage the relationship chain well from the beginning, find the core figures, and then tackle them.
② Each enterprise in the park has its own independent property rights, independent household numbers, and independent transformers, which is equivalent to different factories gathering in this park. In this case, a single enterprise can be developed as an ordinary customer. As long as its individual electricity consumption exceeds 3 million yuan per year, it can be visited.
③ There is a main transformer in the park, which belongs to the government, so this is a bit troublesome. It depends on whether the billing is based on the main transformer in the park or on the branch lines of different enterprises at the power supply bureau. If it is based on the branch lines, the electricity consumption can be considered. However, if it is based on the main transformer, it may not be feasible.
In short, the installation of commercial and industrial energy storage power stations is not achieved overnight. It requires comprehensive considerations from various aspects such as technology, economy, and policies by enterprises. Through the quick judgment method in this article, you can have a preliminary understanding of whether the enterprise is suitable for installing energy storage power stations, and the analysis of common misconceptions can help you avoid pitfalls in the development process and ensure the smooth progress of the project.
