Lessons Learned
“Field tests are extremely important – especially when using battery storage for energy trading. This significantly raises the requirements for hardware, software and technical support,” says Leonard Friese, Product Manager at TESVOLT. “We learned a lot during the field tests. At first, there were several technical hurdles, then only occasional minor issues – and finally the moment came when everything ran smoothly on a permanent basis.”
Early Coordination with Grid Operators is Key
“The field test phase helped us optimise new project workflows and internal processes. Initially, it took several days to digitally integrate a new storage project into our virtual power plant together with the traders. Now it’s just a few steps, usually completed within half a day,” explains Juri von Wilcken, Product Manager at TESVOLT ENERGY. The start-up aggregates commercial storage systems into a virtual power plant, enabling even smaller battery systems to participate in energy trading on the electricity exchange. “We also learned to engage with the relevant grid operators early in the project initiation phase to avoid unnecessary delays in starting the marketing process.”
Storage Systems in Energy Trading Generate High Revenues
“Energy trading is creating a gold rush atmosphere in the storage industry right now. But I wanted to try it out first before offering the FORTON and the business model to my customers. Now I know: it works. The storage systems run smoothly and generate the forecasted revenues. This means they will pay for themselves in about five to six years,” says Johannes Mitterreiter, Managing Director of the electrical contracting company Reichbrandstätter in Bavaria’s Chiemgau region. “I have four FORTON units on my company premises. When customers see them and I show them the revenues, they want a piece of the pie too – they want to join in energy trading.”
Until now, operators of commercial storage systems had little chance of finding a trader willing to handle their smaller storage capacities on the electricity exchange. TESVOLT Energy connects these systems to the grid in aggregated form and markets their capacity through three of Germany’s most renowned traders. TESVOLT Energy also creates competition among the energy traders. For customers, this means particularly high revenues and reduced risk. Anyone with a grid connection of at least 50 kW and a battery storage system of at least 50 kW can participate.
15-Year Performance Guarantee
“Commercial storage has never been this economical. Technically, this is only possible with a battery storage system that is extremely robust – capable of being charged and discharged several times a day over many years,” explains Simon Schandert, CTO and Co-Founder of TESVOLT. “TESVOLT Energy’s intelligent software also ensures that the storage system is operated as profitably as possible while being as gentle as necessary.”
Virtual Storage Power Plant is Growing
“Since the field tests were completed, we’ve been receiving even more orders from customers who want to use FORTON for energy trading. We are therefore onboarding more and more storage systems into our virtual power plant,” reports von Wilcken. “Two-thirds of all orders are for FORTON units intended for trading, while one-third are for classic applications such as optimising self-consumption and peak shaving – which remain highly profitable.”
About TESVOLT ENERGY
TESVOLT ENERGY GmbH is a software start-up based in Berlin. TESVOLT ENERGY’s intelligent software enables battery storage systems from as little as 50 kW to participate in front-of-the-meter energy trading, delivering very high revenues while ensuring long service life. As a wholly owned subsidiary of TESVOLT AG, the company also benefits from its parent’s expertise in battery storage and project business experience.
Together with TESVOLT, TESVOLT ENERGY offers customers a complete solution: high-performance battery storage systems, installation and maintenance through certified specialist partners, and energy trading.
www.tesvolt-energy.com
