A PV system for a Spanish cereal producer

Fronius and Victron Energy have partnered on a project involving cereal producer CETOSA (Cereals Torremorell SA), based in Algerri in the Spanish province of Lleida — a remote region where an unrestricted power supply cannot always be guaranteed. Many consumers in such regions rely solely on energy produced by diesel generators; however, these generators are expensive to maintain and have high emission levels.

In order to optimise the cost-effectiveness of its business and ensure a continuous power supply for production operations, CETOSA opted for solar power produced by its own photovoltaic (PV) system. The company turned to solar technology from Fronius and Dutch energy specialist Victron Energy to benefit from their expertise in efficient solar systems.

“The aim of this project was to upgrade CETOSA’s 82 kW photovoltaic system,” said Francisco Heredia, technical advisor at Fronius Spain. Three Fronius Symo inverters were installed for this purpose and the energy generator was connected directly to the microgrid — a regional, self-contained power distribution network.

“Our inverters have a special set-up for this purpose, with various functions to ensure stable microgrid operation,” added Heredia.

In order to store the electricity generated and so provide a continuous power supply, Fronius made its inverters compatible with technology from Victron Energy, a supplier of energy solutions for grid-independent systems and solar-powered systems. Six Victron Quattro inverter chargers and four Victron BlueSolar charge controllers in CETOSA’s system ensure the agricultural business is able to store surplus energy that can be used as and when it is needed.

The technology from Fronius and Victron Energy also offers advantages in terms of failsafe operation. Most of the time, the output of the inverter is controlled without communication.

“Here, the frequency droop characteristic of the inverter charger and the inverter ensure optimum power setpoints,” said David Hanek, product manager at Fronius. “But should the load be less than the maximum capacity of the PV generator, and if the batteries are already full, automatic power reduction will be required.”

In addition to the frequency droop characteristic, voltage-dependent power reduction and reactive power regulation functions can also be activated. A back-up generator provides another layer of safety.

CETOSA also benefits from effective system monitoring: the operator can use the Victron Remote Monitoring Portal (VRM) to view live values, while the Fronius Solar.web online portal provides a comprehensive range of display and analysis functions for all PV system data. The Colour Control Display (CCGX) from Victron acts as a data aggregator between the Fronius Datamanager and the Victron inverter/charger.

The technology means the cereal producer is supplied with energy independently of the public grid and is now in the position to power its operations using primarily solar energy. “Not only is this considerably more cost-effective, it is also much better for the environment,” said Matthijs Vader, managing director at Victron Energy.

Images ©Fronius International GmbH