Petrol Pump shifted from Inverter to Energy Storage System

An Indian Oil Petrol Pump in Chhattisgarh replaced the old Tubular Lead Acid 20 battery system with the latest technology, the Su-vastika Energy Storage System, with a lithium-ion battery system.

Mr Rohit Kumar Singh is the owner of this petrol Pump, which is located at Ambikapur. The Google location of this Petrol pump is https://www.google.com/maps/@23.2971675,82.4825986,14z?entry=ttu

Mr Rohit was spending money on the maintenance of the 20 battery Inverter system and was very unhappy with the performance of this 3 phase Inverter. One day, after much research, he shifted to the battery energy storage system technology by replacing their tubular lead-acid-based inverter.

Benefits after the installation are:

• Space saving: The compact lithium battery of the Su-vastika system takes up significantly less space than the multiple batteries required for the lead-acid inverter. This frees up valuable real estate at the petrol pump. It’s a neat and clean system.
• Instant backup: Lithium batteries offer near-instantaneous power switching, eliminating the lag experienced with lead-acid systems during power outages. This ensures seamless operation of the petrol pump’s critical equipment. Earlier, his pumps used to shut down when a power blackout happened, and the customers would stand and wait till the inverter was switched on, which used to take some time. Still, there is no waiting as the pumps keep dispensing even when a power cut happens because of the superior switching technology in the Battery Energy Storage System.
• Increased backup time: Lithium batteries typically have a longer lifespan and higher discharge depth than lead-acid batteries, translating to extended backup power during outages. The lithium battery comes in C1 capacity, and the tubular Lead Acid battery comes in the C20 package, making a massive difference in backup time.
• Life of Lithium battery: The life of Lithium battery is more than 7 to 10 years compared to Tubular Lead Acid battery, which also has 2 to 3 years.
• Capacity: The Lithium-ion battery is of C1 capacity, and the Tubular Lead Acid battery is of C20, which makes the Lithium-ion battery superior in power compared to the Tubular Lead Acid battery.
• Uninterrupted Power: The uninterrupted operation during power cuts likely improves customer experience at the petrol pump. There is no power cut felt on the petrol pump as the power from the Battery Energy Storage System is uninterrupted. The static switch installed in the Energy Storage System has such a fast speed that whenever power fails, customers can not feel the same as there is seamless power all the time.

Considerations:

         Cost: When you are choosing the Lead Acid Inverter with 20 battery system, then the Lithium ESS is cheaper than the Lead Acid battery cost as the backup in Lithium battery will be more than 20 battery Inverter set up as the Lead Acid battery comes in C20 package and Lithium-ion battery comes in C1 package, so it has more backup time to deliver compare to Tubular Lead Acid battery of C20 capacity.

• Installation and Maintenance: Installing a Lithium-ion battery Energy Storage System is straightforward as one battery is connected to the Energy Storage system. Any generator mechanic can install it in 10 minutes as there are not 20 batteries that need to be associated with each other, and they need expertise for selecting the proper wires and connecting them properly. As one battery is not connected correctly, the Lead Acid battery may spark or blast.
• Solar Option: The Energy Storage System can integrate the Solar System so users can install the Solar panels with the same system and enjoy the Solar system’s unrestrained power, whereas the Inverter can’t be upgraded to a Solar system.

In one of the earlier project on the petrol pump we replaced the Diesel Generator with the Energy Storage System with Lithium battery bank of 30 KVA and that has been working for more than one year now. https://suvastika.com/petrol-pump-makes-a-difference-with-lithium-inverter-reducing-carbon-footprint-and-improving-air-quality/#:~:text=Petrol%20pumps%20can%20make%20a,emissions%20than%20traditional%20diesel%20generators.

The switch to a Su-vastika Energy Storage System seems like a positive step for the petrol pump, offering space optimisation, improved reliability, and potentially contributing to customer satisfaction. However, it’s crucial to consider the initial cost and potential need for specialised expertise when making such decisions.