Don’t Let a Battery Package Decide Your Business Solar Size

Start with the site, not the package

When considering solar and battery storage together, give each part its own assessment. A combined proposal should answer your business’s requirements, rather than become the starting point for deciding what those requirements are. The practical question is not simply whether you want both technologies. It is whether the proposed solar size makes sense before the battery enters the discussion.

For a NSW warehouse, hospitality venue, manufacturer, retailer or medical practice, keep two questions separate: what should determine the solar size, and what would justify adding storage? Answering the first does not commit you to the second. This approach also leaves room to decide that solar is worth investigating but a battery is not.

Build a solar brief that stands on its own

Australian Government guidance identifies electricity use and its timing, budget, sunny roof space and installation complexity as factors in solar sizing. Use those factors to establish a solar brief before accepting the size included in a combined package. None should disappear from the discussion because storage is also proposed.

Ask the assessor to explain how each factor influenced the solar recommendation. What electricity use and operating times have been considered? What budget is being assessed? What sunny roof space is available, and what installation complexity needs consideration? If the explanation mainly points to the accompanying battery, request a clearer account of how the solar size fits the site itself.

Give the battery a separate job

NSW Government guidance says business batteries can help manage energy use and may reduce peak demand charges, but suitability needs an investment assessment. A battery therefore needs a stated purpose and its own justification. Its inclusion in a solar package is not, by itself, a reason to purchase it.

Ask which outcome the battery assessment is examining. Is the aim to manage energy use, investigate possible peak demand charge reductions, or provide configured backup? If backup is part of the brief, confirm that it is explicitly addressed: a battery supplies electricity during outages only when configured for backup. Do not treat the word ‘battery’ as confirmation that backup is included.

Keep shared assumptions visible

Separate assessments do not mean ignoring the combined proposal. Ask for a clear explanation of any solar recommendation that changes when the battery is included. Which assumption changed, and why does the revised solar size still fit electricity use, timing, budget, sunny roof space and installation complexity?

Keep electricity purchasing assumptions visible too. Tariffs vary by customer and location, and businesses with solar often continue buying grid electricity. Ask which tariff the assessment uses and how continued grid purchases are treated. A combined proposal should not leave you assuming that adding storage means the business will no longer need grid electricity.

Use a checklist that allows a no

Before committing, check that you can answer these questions: Is the solar size explained against all five sizing factors? Is the battery’s purpose stated separately? Has battery suitability received an investment assessment? Is the relevant customer and location tariff identified? Are ongoing grid purchases considered? If outage supply matters, is backup configuration explicit? Can the assessor explain why each component belongs in the proposal?

Reasons not to buy the battery include an investment assessment that does not support it, an unclear purpose, or a proposal that leaves essential assumptions unresolved. You can also pause the whole package if the solar size lacks a site-based explanation. Neither decision requires dismissing the technologies altogether; it means declining to purchase before the case is clear.

Take two briefs into one NSW site assessment

Prepare a short solar-sizing brief and a separate battery-purpose brief, even if you intend to seek one combined proposal. Bring your electricity use, operating times, tariff information, budget and questions about the site. Ask UR Energy for a NSW site assessment that explains the solar sizing factors and assesses the battery investment separately before recommending a combined purchase.