Rijsenhout office building more sustainable with advanced hybrid energy system

The energy supply at our office building in Rijsenhout was thoroughly revised last year with the aim of making the building more sustainable and more self-sufficient. This project marks an important milestone and is part of our ambition, to contribute to a sustainable future.

Although the idea of completely covering the roof with solar panels seemed attractive, this did not prove to be the most efficient option due to our relatively low power consumption and limited feed-in possibilities. From research, a combination of a more limited number of solar panels with battery storage emerged as the ideal solution. This system allows us to significantly reduce both our electricity and natural gas consumption.

The installation includes 664 dual-face solar panels, which generate energy not only at the front but also at the back via reflection. This allows an efficiency 10% higher than standard panels, resulting in an annual energy generation of about 250 MWh. The generated energy is stored in a custom-made container with lithiumion batteries from Tesvolt, which has a capacity of 100 kW and meets high safety requirements, for example with regard to fire resistance via an integrated extinguishing system.

The hybrid power system allows flexible switching between using power from the solar panels, the batteries and the regular grid. The system is monitored 24/7 by an external party, using advanced energy market platforms such as GOPACS and EPEX SPOT. This allows us to optimally use, store or sell generated power, depending on the most favourable energy market conditions. Thanks to this system, we save around 9,000 cubic metres of natural gas annually, our CO₂ emissions are reduced by almost 15 tonnes and we can cover up to 70% of our energy consumption with sustainably generated power.

Since its implementation a few months ago, the system has been functioning properly, with days when we are completely self-sufficient. The system has now been certified (in accordance with NEN 1010 and SCIOS Scope 12 standards) and we have switched to electric heating by means of an air-conditioning system, making the most efficient use of the electrical energy generated even during the winter months.