Home energy storage refers to the local storage of electricity by home energy storage devices for later use. Electrochemical energy storage products, also known as battery energy storage systems (or BESS for short), are based on rechargeable batteries, typically lithium-ion or lead-acid batteries, and are computer-controlled with intelligent software to handle charging and discharging cycles.
1. Overcoming Grid Losses: Due to transmission losses in the power grid, power transmission from power plants to population centers is inherently inefficient, especially in densely populated urban areas where power plants are difficult to locate. By allowing a larger proportion of on-site power generation to be consumed on-site rather than output to the energy grid, home energy storage devices can reduce the inefficiency of grid transmission.
2. Energy Grid Support
When connected to a server via the Internet, home energy storage devices can theoretically be ordered to provide very short-term services to the energy grid:
(1) Reducing Demand Pressure During Peak Hours-Providing short-term demand response during peak demand periods reduces the need for inefficient operation of short-term power generation assets such as diesel generators.
(2) Frequency Correction – Provides ultra-short-term correction to keep the power frequency within the tolerance range required by the regulator (e.g., 50Hz or 60Hz +/- n%).
3. Reduced Dependence on Fossil Fuels
Due to the aforementioned efficiency and their ability to increase on-site solar energy consumption, these devices reduce the amount of electricity generated using fossil fuels (i.e., natural gas, coal, oil, and diesel).