Chapel Hill’s Strata Solar wants to try working storage batteries into some of the solar projects it builds next year as part of a contract with Chinese panel manufacturer BYD Co.
Strata, one of North Carolina’s leading solar development and construction companies, has agreed to purchase 160 megawatts worth of solar panels from BYD. That would supply nearly half of the 300 to 400 megawatts worth of projects Strata forecasts for the coming year.
Strata spokesman Blair Schoof says Strata is still discussing how many projects and which ones would include batteries. There is also no decision yet on how much battery storage to include in a given project.
U.S. market
BYD, based Shenzhen Province, is best known in the United States as a producer of electric vehicles and rechargeable batteries.
Strata CEO Markus Wilhelm and a team from Strata toured BYD’s Shenzhen facilities and finalized the agreement there.
“We have been very impressed with BYD’s focus on solar and storage technology,” Wilhelm says in a prepared statement. “BYD’s renewable energy division is highly vertically integrated, which benefits from strong engineering competence, and research and production capabilities in panel manufacturing, racking, inverter technology, and comprehensive storage solutions.”
BYD Chairman Chuanfu Wang says the deal is important for his company as it works to increase its market share in the United States.
N.C. projects
“BYD’s competitive advantage in battery technology gives us a strong strategic position, allowing us to offer a unique total energy solution,” Wang says. “Strata and BYD have been working on a series of interesting models for the utilization of BYD storage solutions in several upcoming Strata projects which we are very excited to be a participating in.”
Strata expects to complete about 200 megawatts worth of solar installation in 2013.
Most of Strata’s projects are in North Carolina. But it is building solar farms in Tennessee and has interests in California as well. It expects to increase its work outside the North Carolina market going forward.
