Solar PV application

[vivienz]

For anyone considering more than 4kW on their solar PV, I received this from my DNO today and it may be helpful.  Note that their quoted maximum turnaround time for applications is 65 working days, i.e. around 3 months.

 

 

 

To complete an application, and allow me to send the application to our Network Planner, we would require the following information;

 

·         Schematic – Please show all live phases, neutral, earth, lockable isolators, the name & size of inverters being used, a clear demarcation between the DNO and customer equipment and the generation itself.

                               

·         Site Plan – Please provide a google earth image of the site, and mark the meter point

 

·         Completed G59 Application

 

Please can you also provide your MPAN for the above application.

 

We will retain your partial application for 10 days from todays date. If we receive no further correspondence from you by this date, we will cancel this application and delete your records. You are, of course, free to make a new application at any time.

Microgen.pdf

[Russdl]

On the ever growing list of things to do...

 

Thanks for posting.

 

 

[Nickfromwales]

After delving into this a bit deeper, there is a get out of jail card for those wanting more PV than their local infrastructure will allow, eg for cases where the DNO has refused you a connection of say 6kWp.

Solar Edge inverters can be used to get "export limitation", which guarantees that you'll never ever export more then ( iirc ) 3.8kW even if your array is throwing out 6kW. This is a great option for folk wanting to flood a mix of elevations, where realistically a spread of ( for eg ) ~8kWp over say 3 elevations ( or a mix of dwelling + outbuildings ) would never all receive sufficient direct sunlight to get up to or beyond 4kW after known consumption, but collectively they make the connected max kWp too much for a connection to be allowed. Also the SE inverter has a 12 year warranty and utilised 'DRY' capacitors so will outlive a lot of its competitors. Basically you can happily factor in one inverter change in the 20 year forecast whereas with others you may be on 2 at least. 

 

Also a good get out of jail card for those who have been told to pay ££££ towards infrastructure upgrades as for eg I have had a number of clients who have come to me in the throws of getting 3-phase upgrades to accommodate a whopping 9-10-11+kWp and I have then told them not to bother as they'll likely end up exporting with nothing to show for it, other than a big bill for PV and a big bill for a new supply cable to manage all the exporting  !

 

RoI for PV can be very good when implemented correctly, but otherwise can be quite perverse. Forget FiT and Export, the figure you need to focus on is the offsetting of grid consumption ( import ) which ids the money maker. Get that aspect of the maths to the front of the table and right there lays the sweet spot. For a current proposal the ( sizeable ) PV installation is set to cost ~£12k, and the 25 year forecast shows total revenue of around £24k so a break-even at 12.5 years, and 12.5 years of 'free' juice thereafter. With an ASHP in the picture the heating will be provided at a factor of at least 3, so thats a heck of a lot of bang for the bucks.