Solar Energy Service

We want to explain a little how it works so that you can see in which cases the use of Solar Panels is convenient for you.

First, in general, the ideal here in Bolivia is to make distributed connections, without independent batteries, that is, connected to the Elfec system. Batteries are devices that allow you to store energy from the sun during the day so that you can use it at night in different equipment.

Without the battery, you would use the energy generated during the solar panel in the day, but at night you would already use energy from Elfec. (You will still pay Elfec, but not so much anymore)

Why is it NOT convenient for you to put batteries?

Because the cost increases a lot, and they last around 4 years. (meaning that every 4 years you will have to consider that extra high cost) Today they are not very efficient and their cost is very high, perhaps in the future it will be convenient when they become more efficient . In countries like Spain, where the cost of electrical energy is very high, it is convenient to use batteries, because despite being expensive, it compensates for the high payment for electrical energy. In Bolivia the cost of electrical energy is not so high, for this reason the batteries do not compensate the investment.

Something important to highlight is that there is a decree of law 4477 that establishes general conditions to regulate the activity of Distributed Generation in the electrical energy distribution systems , and Bolivia still does not have the infrastructure to receive extra energy or overload its own system, therefore you cannot generate the total energy that you consume, (or sell the extra energy as is done in other countries like the Netherlands) for that what is done is take an average of your bill of the last 12 months of consumption, or in the event that the construction is new, a calculation is made of the amount of energy that you will require according to your equipment. The good thing is that they are modular, so depending on your consumption we can increase the capacity.

Solar panel power generation should be around 60 - 70% of consumption. Why can't you put more? because solar power generation is unstable. and the ELFEC system must not be overloaded (since May 2021, the installation of solar panels is already legally regulated so that it can be connected to the ELFEC networks). When installing a system, you must work together with ELFEC to ensure that it works in optimal conditions.

Let's do numbers!

An investment is considered excellent if you recover it in 2 to 3 years, it is considered good if you recover it in 3 to 6 years and if you recover it in more years, perhaps it is not such a good investment. Something very important to take into account is also that generating clean energy is a personal environmental contribution that should not necessarily be linked to numbers.

In short, depending on the circumstances, there are cases in which the investment in solar panels is recovered in 5 years and others in 20.

Before considering the installation take into account that:

According to your meter number, you have to request a 12-month electricity consumption history from ELFEC. For the issue of calculation of Watts consumption, it is important to take into account which category you belong to, it is not the same to be in the home category where they charge you 1 - 1.2 bs/watt than to be in the industrial category where they charge you 0.4 - 0.9 bs/watt
In the event that you still do not have electricity bills (if the construction is new), an approximate calculation of your electricity consumption should be made according to the devices that you plan to have in your home (refrigerators, televisions, number of photos, number of cell phones, computers, washing machines, etc.).
According to the calculated total, the solar panels that are installed must generate 70% of the energy to avoid over injection.

For the installation of solar panels, you have to take into account that several expenses need to be considered:

photovoltaic modules
grid microinverter
communication accessory
mounting structure
Drivers + Accessories
Bidirectional meter
Registration service - Solar plant
Annual Maintenance Cost - MTTO
Internet service (in case you want to do remote monitoring). The latter in charge of the client

We will leave you here three examples of quotes:

In which case will your investment be good?

If your consumption is less than 100 bs/month it is not recommended because you will recover your investment in more than 15 years.
In a house that consumes 250 bs/month you will have to install a system without batteries of 500 W - 7000 bs. and you will save 100 bs per month (in 6 years you will recover your investment)
It is highly recommended in common areas of buildings or institutions that have high energy consumption during the day such as banks, schools, universities. And it is ideal to put them without batteries. You will save 40-50% of the bill. For a building you may need a 5000 W system that costs you 50,000 bs and per month you will save 2064 bs (in 4 years you will recover your investment)
With solar panels you save 30 to 40% of your bill payment.
Take into account that every 6 months you have to do maintenance on the solar panels (cleaning, technical revision, equipment revision and possible quote if there is any damaged equipment). It has an approximate cost of 100 dollars + possible change of equipment.
We give you a 2-year warranty on the equipment, where we cover any manufacturing fault that could exist in them. After two years, any inconvenience will already have to be taken into account in your maintenance costs.
Form of payment: 50% contract signing and 50% 1 day before installation. (7-10 days)

You have to take into account that these are referential prices, it is only so that you have an idea of the budget. There are several variants that can affect the price, such as:

The meters of wiring that has to be done
Whether or not to make a ceiling support
How far is the place
The price of the items to date

To know the exact price contact us! and we will send our team to do an evaluation =)