Solaredge "Flexible Grid Services"

Qyburn

Hi,

I received notification and invitation to join this program. As far as I can see you let a third party "Axle Energy" take control of your battery and run charge or discharge jobs as needed for grid balancing, with payment. Figures are not really spelled out although they say that typical users earned around £75 last year.

Anyone have either direct experience, or inside knowledge.

https://www.solaredge.com/uk/flexible-grid-services

pete-20-11

I know of people who used them for GivEnergy inverters during last year's DFS. 

I think solar edge are working with Octopus too, soon to be available on Intelligent Flux?

As to Axel, I think there were a few issues with commands not being reset properly (but that could be specific to GivEnergy APIs, plus it was early days).

During the DFS sessions they overbid for some sessions which meant they were ruled out. Then for other sessions Octopus boosted the offer themselves, so there were a few that wished they'd joined octopus DFS rather than Axel. 

EmEsEForumTomato

It does look an interesting opportunity, but it is hard to know whether to commit.

Back in July there was mention that Octopus and SolarEdge were working on smart integration (news: Kraken and SolarEdge Light up Path to Cheaper, Cleaner Energy') but I have not yet seen anything appear in the app to enable it.

Also, in a call, I heard that only one device at a time is currently supported (battery, pump, or ev). I hope that will change, allowing optimal balance. In that light and seeing how the Intelligent tariffs can vary pricing at will, it is hard to know whether the Axel scheme would integrate well. I would love to hear more from the community. There is a Medium article titled SolarEdge battery and Octopus Flux' from Adrian Taylor, but it needs revisiting now that there are more options.

Sorry, I am not yet allowed to post links.

rugauger

My guess is that the Octopus (aka Kraken) / Solaredge co-operation didn't work out in the end, so SE went elsewhere and got Axel on board.

Having done DFS via the Octopus Savings Sessions last winter, I've decided to sign up for the Solaredge/Axel scheme this time.  Mainly because of the automation, i.e. I don't have to remember to set my charging/discharging times manually to get the most out of it because Axel take control of the battery during the DFS time slots.

So far, all that has happened is that "they" have disabled the "Time of Use" battery mode in the mySolaredge app.  That's kind of annoying because it's the one I use the most, but according to their FAQ they would disable certain battery modes to support the functioning of the scheme.  So I can't complain, really

Qyburn

There are some mentions of this on Facebook and it contradicts their FAQ ..

"What if I already have a charge schedule? Will I lose it?

We'll adjust your charge schedule as necessary and then reset it immediately after the event. You can also re-adjust the schedule from the MySolarEdge app if it doesn’t suit your needs."

"Do I still have control over my battery?

Yes. You will always be able to manually override any settings that we send"

 It's also reported that it disabled Homeassistant control. It seems excessively locked down considering they're supposedly only going to take control now and again, after giving notice.

"How will I be notified?

We'll send you an email letting you know we'll be making changes to your battery. At the end of each month, we'll let you know what events you've participated in, and how much you've earned."

rugauger

Qyburn said:

There are some mentions of this on Facebook and it contradicts their FAQ ..

"What if I already have a charge schedule? Will I lose it?

We'll adjust your charge schedule as necessary and then reset it immediately after the event. You can also re-adjust the schedule from the MySolarEdge app if it doesn’t suit your needs."

"Do I still have control over my battery?

Yes. You will always be able to manually override any settings that we send"

The Manual mode is still available.  I guess that satisfies the claims that "you can re-adjust" and "you will always be able to manually override".  Time of Use is explicitly not supported as per the FAQ.

Strictly speaking, they have not made a change to the battery itself yet (as in: charging/discharging); they have only disabled the ToU option in the app.  So far, my settings in Manual mode have not been changed, either.  I have not received an email notification yet about upcoming changes to the charging schedule.

deckdude

I signed up for this at the beginning of October and my battery has since stopped charging as per my manual schedule. I’ve been battling with SolarEdge support for the last few weeks try to opt me out or turn off the “grid services”.  It is very frustrating and is still not back to normal b

Wuerselen2002

I got my system in 2023 and signed up for the Solaredge Demand Flexibility Service (DFS)  same year. Since then, I've experienced various charging issues, such as the battery disconnecting from the system. Charging was not possible for almost the entire month of January 2024, apparently due to a server issue that affected other users. The same problem occurred again in March but was resolved towards the end of the month. Given the time of year, there was no need to charge from the grid until I attempted to do so in September. Based on my experience, the issue seems to be temporarily fixed for only a few days.

A few weeks ago, my dealer informed me that the issue could be traced back to the program. For five events during the winter, I received a £33 Amazon voucher. However, this compensation does not make up for the time lost, the money I lost due to tariff changes, and the constant communication with my very helpful installer and Solaredge. 

I have opted out of their new Flexible Grid Services program, and I can't wait for this process to be completed.

I would not recommend this program, even though some people may want to maximise their system's potential.