Is Battery storage a better option since utilities price rises?

[Dave S]

Hi,

I get on fine with my PV cells and try and charge up the car when the sun is shining (even in the north of Scotland!). I looked at battery storage about a year ago but decided I probably wasn't going to recoup my investment quickly enough.

But wit the horror stories of electricity pricing, now and for the foreseeable future, I'm thinking of reassessing if a battery might well be a useful asset?

What have others on the Forum decided to do re battery installation?

 

[BugEyed]

Just like you I couldn't justify it with previous Go prices of 5p off-peak and 13.7p peak. But now on Intelligent Octopus at 7.5p/40p both the value of stored solar (saving peak at 40p) and stored off-peak for when there's no solar (saving 40-7.5=32.5p). The exact ROI depends on both what you pay and how you calculate it, but for me 9.6kWh cost £4k and should repay in about 3 years with a meaningful guaranteed life of 10 years at current prices, and I can't see electricity getting cheaper but I could be wrong.

 

[Gomev]

Just like you I couldn't justify it with previous Go prices of 5p off-peak and 13.7p peak. But now on Intelligent Octopus at 7.5p/40p both the value of stored solar (saving peak at 40p) and stored off-peak for when there's no solar (saving 40-7.5=32.5p). The exact ROI depends on both what you pay and how you calculate it, but for me 9.6kWh cost £4k and should repay in about 3 years with a meaningful guaranteed life of 10 years at current prices, and I can't see electricity getting cheaper but I could be wrong.

I've been quoted £6k for a 3kW AC Coupled Bundle with 9.5kWh Battery.
Hard to justify at that price as low users, however at 4k I would have jumped at it. (I don't have solar, roof orientation is awkward)

 

[BugEyed]

That's a bit harder to justify as you say, I already had a hybrid inverter and the solar tips it for me.

 

[kin]

Just like you I couldn't justify it with previous Go prices of 5p off-peak and 13.7p peak. But now on Intelligent Octopus at 7.5p/40p both the value of stored solar (saving peak at 40p) and stored off-peak for when there's no solar (saving 40-7.5=32.5p). The exact ROI depends on both what you pay and how you calculate it, but for me 9.6kWh cost £4k and should repay in about 3 years with a meaningful guaranteed life of 10 years at current prices, and I can't see electricity getting cheaper but I could be wrong.

I thought intelligence Octopus paired up with your car charger so it knows you’re only getting cheap rate when it’s charging your EV only.

 

[Lguk]

I thought intelligence Octopus paired up with your car charger so it knows you’re only getting cheap rate when it’s charging your EV only.

You can use the off-peak hours for anything. Intelligent controls when they charge your car on your behalf and they charge you at the cheaper rate, even if they decide to charge 3pm because the grid has an abundance of solar/wind. The 'compromise' is that you get cheap off peak for letting them test grid balancing technology by controlling when your car is charged.

 

[kin]

You can use the off-peak hours for anything. Intelligent controls when they charge your car on your behalf and they charge you at the cheaper rate, even if they decide to charge 3pm because the grid has an abundance of solar/wind. The 'compromise' is that you get cheap off peak for letting them test grid balancing technology by controlling when your car is charged.

Ok! Thanks, in that case I’ll look into it a little more, and may change my current Go to Intelligent?

 

[Lguk]

You need a compatible charger. The MGs don't have an api that octopus can communicate, so it has to be a charger off the list.

 

[kin]

You need a compatible charger. The MGs don't have an api that octopus can communicate, so it has to be a charger off the list.

So I’m not qualified for the intelligent Octopus?