Koala Storage has two sites in the Perth metro area at Osborne Park and O’Connor. The Osborne Park site is a standard self storage facility whereas the facility at O’Connor includes climate controlled storage units. The company approached Solargain seeking help in reducing their significant electricity bills at the O’Connor facility.
Due to the nature of the business there is a steady demand for electricity during the daytime when the peak tariff rates are in effect. As a result the most viable option was the installation of a 30kW solar photovoltaic (PV) system to offset the vast majority of their daytime electricity load. The system comprises 120 x 250W Renesola poly- crystalline solar panels (Virtus II) and 3 x SMA Sunny Tripower 10000TL inverters.
Due to the roof being completely flat and there being plenty of roof space, tilt frames were used to maximise the efficiency and output from the system.
The continuous electricity load at the cold storage facility made it an ideal candidate for the benefits of solar PV. The solar system supplies electricity throughout the day, reducing the amount of electricity consumed from the grid, leading to a reduction in the electricity bill.
As the solar system only works during the daytime often there is a mismatch between the times the electricity is produced and when it is needed. A cold storage facility overcomes this constraint by having a steady demand throughout the daytime.
The 132kWh (units) per day that the system is designed to produce as an average across the year will provide approximately 40% of the sites total electricity costs, dramatically reducing their reliance upon the power billed at the higher tariff rate.
Financially, given their current tariff and the projected future rises in the cost of electricity, Koala Storage anticipate the system will have paid for itself in 4-5 years giving them a most satisfactory tax free financial return.
Also as the freehold owners of the premises the system adds significant value to their asset, as disclosure of energy efficiency for commercial premises becomes mandatory in future years.
Koala Storage has been so impressed with the quality of product and workmanship with their first system that they are now in talks with Solargain about a smaller system for the site at Osborne Park.
