powercor solar export limit

It would definitely be better if we didnt need to limit the amount of power solar systems sent into the grid. But whether or not extra solar capacity will pay for itself is another matter. Victoria's "Hotest" Solar Postcode is 3977 at last look. 11kW panels with 10kW 3-phase inverter (Fronius Symo + Fronius 3-phase meter). 0000008043 00000 n MPPT2 always shows better performance than MPPT, usually quite significantly better. They want to do it there way and it seems my request complicates things for them and I dont hear back, bar a couple. My question is should that then eliminate the 5 kw inverter of the powerwall wich Energex claims is part of the 10kw allowance on a single phase? That would provide both export limiting, and, the incorporation of a battery system (for my household, if we would have a 6.6 kW panels generating capacity system, rather than the 5kW one that we have, something like the BYD LVS 20 or 24kWh battery tower, would, I believe be appropriate), which would provide for energy arbitrage, smoothing both power exported to the grid, and, power imported from the grid, especially during peak demand periods. Because people have been refused any STCs for being just a few watts over, no installer will go over the limit for a normal installation. One thing I find is that Voltage control works well: instead of the inverter resetting if the voltage gets too high, my inverters roll back output, so it actually helps my neighbors too because their inverters reset less often. Western Australia Horizon Power area: Regional Western Australia. The solar installer or customer must have sought and received pre-approval from us for the requested capacity of the generator. As your sister can presumably export as much power as her solar inverter can produce it wouldnt need this device. Australian Rooftop Solar Powers Rise Astounding, But.. Australias Emissions: Electricity Down, Transport Up, Compare Feed-In Tariffs And Electricity Plans, Solar Export Limiting What It Is & Why Its Useful. A 5 kilowatt inverter will never supply more than 5 kilowatts of power no matter how many kilowatts of panels it has. Whilst this may not be technically defined as export limiting, as the inverter specifications, specify that the inverter, whilst allowing up to an overload factor of 2, will only generate up to 5kW of A/C power 260 IE if Im producing 8KW, the house is using 2KW it will still export 5kw? A small solar system can be financially viable. 0% Australian Rooftop Solar Powers Rise Astounding, But.. Australias Emissions: Electricity Down, Transport Up, Compare Feed-In Tariffs And Electricity Plans, Victorias Powercor Lifts Its Solar Exports Game, 3029: Hoppers Crossing, Tarneit, Truganina, 3030: Cocoroc, Derrimut, Point Cook, Werribee, Werribee South, 3551: Ascot (Greater Bendigo), Axe Creek, Axedale, Bagshot, East Bendigo, Emu Creek, Eppalock, Epsom, 3337: Kurunjang, Melton, Melton West, Toolern Vale, 3340: Bacchus Marsh, Balliang, Coimadai, Darley, Hopetoun Park, Long Forest, Maddingley, Merrimu, 3352: Bonshaw, Bungaree, Bunkers Hill, Burrumbeet, Cambrian Hill, Cardigan, Cardigan Village, Clarendon, 3305: Bolwarra, Cape Bridgewater, Gorae West, Heathmere, Portland, Portland North, Portland West, 3444: Baynton, Kyneton, Lauriston, Lyal, Metcalfe, Redesdale, Tylden 3465 Alma, Bowenvale, Daisy Hill, Maryborough. I have a 5kw solar system plus a Tesla powerwall 2 on my house . In most cases, if you had your envoy shut off, the micros would start and work on their own and independently of the envoy, and in fact of each other. Select the AS/NZS 4777.2:2020 Australia A setting. You can see from the profile name that it ensures the microinverters conform to the AS4777.2:2015 Australian standard that governs inverters, and it enables the advanced Volt-var and Volt-watt controls for adjusting export power when the grid voltage gets too high (as opposed to abruptly shutting off all export power when grid voltage is too high, which happens without Volt-var and Volt-watt). I could easily share my excess power for the time I am not irrigating my crops. Thank you. Has the oppressive authority in WA ever given a reason for not allowing export limited inverters in WA? I am not sure whether it has been explicitly explained, but, what exactly, is the limit of panels generating capacity, that is covered by the federal solar panels rebate? Powercor claims 30% increase in rooftop solar export approvals Victorian network service provider Powercor claims a major works program designed to alleviate grid congestion in areas of high rooftop solar PV penetration has boosted the approval rate for new solar connections to export excess energy to the grid by an impressive 30%. The naming of zones may differ between manufacturers but may appear as: Australia A - applies to the configuration of inverter settings in Victoria and all Eastern . Once voltage thresholds etc are configure in the profile by the Envoy at install, each micro operates largely independently. The good news is, even in a worst-case situation, the amount will be fairly minor. Put down your weapons.3. The majority of customers are approved for the export level they request. NSWs Endeavour Energy area: Western Sydney. 0000007057 00000 n 60% lagging Swearing revenge, he began his lifelong quest to reduce the harm the environment could cause. The word first can be confusing. Thanks Ronald! Amongst other things, AS4777.2015 has some requirements to shutdown on phase imbalance in a 3 phase setup. Am I wrong? So basically the whole local industry is going to be cactus until this is resolved. Thanks. (Or at least it will be expensive to set up well. I suspect that it is likely, that that they are all signaled equally, not in truth I dont know for sure. DC Input Power (Wp) 10000, from its published datasheet. Weve got a system that can be left alone in my opinion, so adding say 6.6kw and a 10kw battery makes good sense but what a task. Talking of which, the fact often gets dropped under the table that neither batteries nor panels and inverters (being mechano-electronic devices) have a limited life span, and their efficiency deteriorates gradually after only a few years. Activities part of Powercors Solar Hotspots program carried out over three months included upgrading infrastructure, adjusting tap settings on street-level transformers, balancing voltage levels on powerlines and various tweakery at zone substations. Households and small businesses that generate electricity using solar panels, wind turbines, or other small-scale generators, can feed back any unused electricity into the electricity grid for other customers to use. South Australian solar panel owners can currently export 5 kilowatts of electricity to the grid but under Flexible Exports, they could export double that amount 10kW. 0 I am on my second Tesla EV and the new one has a rage of 700km if youre not a lead foot. In addition, all modern solar inverters must comply with AS4777.2015 at least. Is there anything that can be done about it? Interesting article. The distributor deals with that by putting the voltage slightly up at the sending end. Powercor is telling increasing numbers of households looking to install new systems in this area they will have a zero export limit. We have a 3kwh system and are really using as much during the day as we can. You could contact Powercor and explain your situation, but I suspect theyll say you need to be an installer to check if an increase in export capability is available. Can anyone shed any light for me? This is assuming that my understanding of what I have read, is correct; that such a system would be permitted, in a single phase connection to the SWIS grid. I have previously posted (or, submitted for posting), the proposition that what is needed, is a hybrid (not meaning in this instance, a hybrid inverter as is commonly used) inverter that is like a cross/combination, of the Goodwe GW5000-MS inverter (or, kind of, the GW10K-MS, in terms of power conversion), and the Goodwe GW5048D-ES; three GW5000-MS provides for up to 10kW of panels generating capacity, across three MPPTs (strings? 2. While I dont know where you are a 4 kilowatt solar system should produce an average of around 18 kilowatt-hours a day in WA. 0000037380 00000 n The solar PV system is connected to the network via an inverter. The data has 5KW flat lining confirming more is being generated. So if your home isnt currently drawing power you wont know from looking at the display if its capable of producing the maximum 5 kilowatts or if it cant provide more than 3 kilowatts. Do the inverters prevent the production of energy by the solar panels when an export limit would otherwise be exceeded? Normally single phase properties can have up to 5 kilowatts of solar inverter capacity and 3 phase properties can have 15 kilowatts. A Decent Battery From sonnen. Hi Powercor wrote back with the following response:"Due to the size of t . I think I was partially wrong about how my PV is connected to the home and the meter. How do I get around this with SAPN , am I allowed to export limit on a swer line in Sth Aust. 3. (2nd one APPROVAL/SITE SPECIFIC CONDITION(s): Total Solar Export must be limited to 5kW). document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Download the first chapter of The Good Solar Guide, authored by SolarQuotes founder Finn Peacock, FREE! If you are interested you can read about this here: https://www.solarquotes.com.au/inverters/mppt/. If you are using Enphase microinverters which is extremely likely the whole system can be export limited using the Enphase Envoy gateway. However they have been advised that this wont be allowed anymore. Generally however, I can advise that Powercor intends to upgrade the network over the next 5 years, starting in January, however, the specifics of where upgrades are happening and the order has not been decided. And for this reasons, I have increasingly seen that it is more challenging to run micros without the envoy which would no doubt be extra code required in later versions of the envoy to enforce implementation of various AS4777 and export limiting requirements that cant be done in the micros alone. JackD 1 year ago. The majority of customers are approved for the export level they request. About CitiPower and Powercor FACT SHEET: SOLAR EXPORT APPROVAL Set appliances to use your solar power Maintenance and safety checks are important Some manufacturers may have this pre-selected. ) 100% Was sure if its been configured correctly or if this is just how it works? For example, our Solar Enablement program is intended to allow more customers to connect a 5kVa solar PV system with export capacity. Or is the energy produced by the panels but dissipated somehow? There are exceptions for off-grid installations and systems that are installed with a battery. It can also only provide this when it is running. There is not likely to be an Enphase system without a gateway (called the Envoy with in the Enphase system), because this is needed to setup the system, configure its profiles and report production and other important functions of the system. The solar PV system is connected to the network via an inverter. Ill upgrade the Endeavour Energy area from Ugly to Bad, since things are clearly not all bad there. If the transformer capacity is limited, you could install solar initially with a low export limit (eg 1 kW) and then have your export limit increased when the transformer was . The percentage var/VA level leading is the inverter sourcing vars to the grid, whereas the percentage var/VA level lagging is the inverter sinking vars from the grid. Anyway you are probably not supposed to be messing around with the profiles without agreement of your DNSP. Unfortunately, SAPN wont allow more than 5 kilowatts of inverter capacity on an SWER line. The ideal way to measure the power flow in and out of your house would be to ask your existing electricity meter. Hi Everyone, The loss figures above are for Sydney and are affected by the climate. The installation of solar photovoltaic systems as well as the correct inverter settings are critical to ensuring customers get the most for their investment in this technology. Finally! Is this correct? Even if I were exporting 100% of it, it still would only bring down my bills by a tiny amount per month. 0% We installed solar power in November last year and were refused export (zero export). As such, unless the investment pays for itself within at most 5-6 years, IMHO it is not a good investment/waste of money and natural resources. 100% There are two options: 1. Nobody wants to see solar energy . It seems so strange that it is clear government policy to get more solar going and yet the network operators are effectively blocking it now. Shane, you appear to be mixing up kW and kWh easily done! What is the go generally with adding an additional solar system to your home? As a single example, the Renault Kangoo ZE van (I think that it is the only battery powered cargo van currently available in Australia) has a 33kWh battery, and, To go further, Kangoo Z.E boasts a Z.E 33 (33kWh) battery, 207 Many NSW rural situations are limited to 3Kw export, due to the length of the transmission lines. STCs can be received for panel capacity up to one-third greater than the inverter capacity. Assume positive intention.4. So while the article suggests 10kW inverter ( 13.33kW DC) in fact the limit seemed to be 10kW DC ( hmmm what does 10kW generation mean exactly ?.) Im afraid thats a tough situation. I wouldnt drive anything else. Fronius Wattpilot: A Smart EV Charger With A Short Warranty, You Wont Believe How Dumb The NSW Governments New Battery Calculator Is. The reason why your sisters inverter is different from yours is your Goodwe would be because yours has a current transformer device that lets it limit the amount of power it exports to the grid. I think is is utter madness that the VIC government is handing out generous rebates of $1850.00 and 4 year interest free loans of up to $1850.00 and Powercor has zero feed in capacity for excess solar power. But still the solar companies keep trying to sell it to me.. Up until quite recently, Powercor had been informing a large proportion of households looking to install new solar systems they will have to cop a zero export limit due to high congestion created by exports from existing systems. hooked up to an energy efficient 44kW motor for a real-world Enter your postcode now. 100 litres alone means little, but if there are 100 litres per hour, this means 100 litre hours of output. Even if you have the Envoy-S, I believe at least on paper there was a Enphase Envoy-S If they face in two or more directions, it will further reduce the losses by reducing the peak solar output while stretching it out, so it lasts longer through the day. 0000008571 00000 n Great article and content on this website To add to this, in the installer section of the Envoys web server control panel, you can set the profile by which all microinverters operate. I am a bit confused about export. 2. Economically this probably Is not viable, as our electricity bill is fairly low. Why my Power Limit is set to ON with the % whereas her Power Limit is set to OFF and she has been exporting. According to NT Power and Water they will normally allow up to a 5 kilowatt inverter with single phase power and up to a 7 kilowatt inverter with 3 phase power. A man named Canute, proved that, centuries ago. We installed 4.5kw with a 5kw inverter in 2014. Please stay on topic. But, now, Goodwe have the GW5000-MS inverter, which, from what I have read, is apparently allowed in WA, for a single phase SWIS grid connection, and, that inverter is a 5kW inverter, that has a maximum panels generating capacity; I am not even sure the inverter would support that, but I fear that sadly up to 25% of the PV energy might be going to waste! ACTs EvoEnergy Network Area: Covers most homes in the ACT, especially in built-up areas. The inverter reduces the amount of electrical energy supplied by the solar panels. If you can export 3kva that means you can have a solar system with up to 4 kilowatts of panels. He first became interested in environmental matters when he was four years old after the environment tried to kill him by smashing fist sized hailstones through the roof of his parents Toowoomba home. So the size of the system becomes irrelevant if you can only export 3kwh (we are Regional NSW Essential Energy). 0000027818 00000 n I am looking at adding a second system (6.2kW) with GoodWe inverter. Your dedicated meter will inform the inverter, and it will immediately reduce the power, so it doesnt exceed 5 kilowatts1. ARTICLE WRITES: Queenslands Energex area: South East Queensland. But if you suddenly switch off everything, there is more surplus solar power than youre allowed to export. Powercor's network solutions manager Claire Cass said of 32,580 customers connected to solar with Powercor in the last 18 months, only 2023 could not export power. Sometimes Powercor can reduce that to a lower figure, or even set a zero-export limit. Thanks so much, David. At the moment a battery system is unlikely to pay for itself, but you could install a system that is larger than what makes financial sense for your current situation and hope home batteries will fall in price over the next few years. Information on whether export limiting is allowed can be found here, but I am going to present the information differently for both ease of use and to make my boss think Ive done something useful. Thus, the question arises; if a single phase domestic rooftop photovoltaic system, involving a Goodwe GW-5000-MS inverter, and, 10kW of solar panels generating capacity, is installed (across up to three MPPTs), would the federal solar panels rebate apply to all of the 10kW of solar panels, or, to only the first 6.66 (or whatever is the exact applicable quantity) of the solar panels generating capacity? Origin offers 8 cents per kWh until a daily export limit of 14 kWh is reached. 1. Have a good christmas. 0000029011 00000 n Powercor will respond in one of three ways: Approve the size system you've requested Limit the amount of power you can export to the grid (e.g. Australian network service providers (including CitiPower) use solar export limits to keep voltage levels in transmission lines operating within safe . I think of it like the rate at which water is flowing out of a hose. Furthermore, the sustained overvoltage inverter protection set point shall be set to 258V. 0000022631 00000 n Recent work by Victorian DNSP Powercor on some problematic parts of its network is enabling more solar power from rooftop panels to be exported to the grid. So having a powerwall is way less useful for helping with an export limit than you would think. Export limiting generally isnt permitted. A condition of this basic connection offer is that all inverter energy systems must have the volt-watt and volt-var response modes enabled with the following settings: Thus if my system is at maximum output, and I am using 2kW, only 3 kW is being exported to the grid. This extra meter adds to the cost of a solar system. AC Output Data I have divided Australias regions into three categories: The information below assumes the property is on the main grid. I have just had a 6.6kw system installed with a Fronius 5kw inverter and am export limited to 3kw. About 50%. Hello. Single-phase properties can install inverter capacity up to 5 kilowatts while 3 phase properties can install up to 30 kilowatts. Victorias Jemena network area: A small but crowded chunk of North and Western Melbourne. I am a total newbie to this but I am unclear why export limiting is good? It does this by adjusting the MPPT but instead of working to maximize power from the panels it reduces it. I have seen my panels producing over 13 kW of power when the battery is drawing 3 kW DC power and the battery, house and car 10 kW of AC power. Queenslands Ergon network area: All of Queensland on the main grid outside of South East Queensland. But you may as well just get a standard inverter and send your excess electricity into the grid. Queenslands Energex area: South East Queensland. Aside from that, when you have high resistance lines, there is a voltage drop over their length. After a major works program involving more than 500 different network alterations and other activities across nine key regions among the most constrained parts of the network, Powercors new solar connections export approval rate of just over 60% at the start of the year has increased to above 90%. 0000009573 00000 n The good news is, if you had a total of 6.6 kilowatts of solar youd probably loose very little due to export limiting if you consume half the output of a 3 kilowatt system and can export 3 kilowatts. What Happens to the Surplus Power That Can't Be Exported to the Grid? As a general rule, 5kW tends to be the upper system size limit for single-phase connections, but some networks allow up to 10kW. Even then, the losses from the limit are minor. just wondering if anybody can shed some light on the following, An option is to take your pumps off-grid and run them independently off a separate off-grid solar system. My sister has the same type of inverter (Goodwe) but she lives in the Estern suburbs of Victoria and she has been exporting but her Power Limit was set OFF. But you will probably find that there is another setting that it will shutdown when 10 minute average voltage is a measly 255v. you aren't allowed to export any power from your solar system to the grid. Long term benefits would be a more energy efficient system. Its only possible to go larger with a zero export limit: https://www.powerwater.com.au/customers/power/solar-power-systems/pv-class-requirements. And doing so potentially puts you running in a non compliant state. The new home didnt have solar. I live in Warrnambool, Victoria. ), Finally understand, the article above is very well written for the layman I am afraid Western Power is very strict. In contrast, most other network distributors set a strict upper limit on the size solar panel system you can install, typically 10kW for single-phase properties. In an Enphase system, that is with the Envoy-S with consumption monitoring. If you are in the solar industry - try to get to the truth, not the sale.5. Means that it caps the amount you can reduce your bills for power used outside of daylight hours? My AS4777.2:2015 profile allows voltages up to 265v (for short periods, and shuts down on 10 minute averages above 258v). Now, that would help protect electricity grids, especially, the fragile, decrepit SWIS grid, for the present. South Australia Power Networks (SAPN) area: SAPN is the only distributor in South Australia. Ready for some quotes? 0000004823 00000 n To get your quotes, please enter your postcode: AEMC: Electricity Prices To Continue To Fall, http://www.johnrogers.com.au/battery_charging_noon.jpg, http://www.solarquotes.com.au/blog/kw-and-kwh-what-is-the-difference/, Why Australian Solar Installers Love Austrian Fronius Inverters, Tesla Powerwall Price Takes A Tumble In Australia, "Snail Mail" Home Battery Offers: Be Wary, New Minimum VIC Solar Feed-In Tariffs Locked In, Glenrowan Solar Farm Construction Gets Cranking. Quotes vary and the deal has to be value/advantage logical or whats the point. SAPN has told me I cant have more than a 5 kw inverter , but thats just not enough. As per current standards, a single phase premises is limited to 10kW generation and 5kW export. it is, kind of, effectively export limiting. After a major works program involving more than 500 different network alterations and other activities across nine key regions among the most constrained parts of the network, Powercor's new solar connections export approval rate of just over 60% at the start of the year has increased to above 90%. 0000037419 00000 n I just dont understand it. I have noticed that one string seems to be performing well under the performance of the slightly smaller string. Tasmania: Under 1% of Tasmanians are on SWER lines, so the generous export limit should often be available. Single-phase properties can have up to 5 kilowatts of inverter capacity, and 3 phase properties can have up to 30 kilowatts. Is this perhaps one of the well-kept secrets about the reality of residential solar production in Western Australia, one that neither the solar installers or inverter manufacturers, let alone Synergy or Western Power want to be publicly known? What am I missing?