Foreword @QdnjXII*
The international Energy Agency (IEA) founded in November 1974, is an autonomous body q8>t!rh<R
within the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development S/4r\6
(OECD) which carries out a comprehensive programme of energy co-operation among its 23 {,? ss$L
member countries. The European Commission also participates in the work of the Agency. 8[zb{PRu
The IEA PhotoVoltaic Power Systems Programme (PVPS) is one of the collaborative R&D W;zpt|kAH
agreements established within the IEA, and since 1993, its Participants have been conducting a dU]/$7
variety of joint projects in the applications of Photovoltaic conversion of solar energy into l!?yu]Yon
electricity.
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The Overall programme is headed by an Executive Committee composed of one representative ?mx\eX{
from each participating country, while the management of individual research projects (Tasks) #G#g|x *V
is the responsibility of Operating Agents. Currently nine Tasks have been established in the Ic x7.Y
IEA PVPS programme. Nu^ p
The Twenty one members are: Australia (AUS), Austria (AUT), Canada (CAN), Denmark |sIr?RL{C
(DNK), European Commission, Finland (FIN), France (FRA), Germany (DEU), Israel (ISR), M:|8]y@
Italy (ITA), Japan (JPN), Korea (KOR), Mexico (MEX), The Netherlands (NLD), Norway 4w4 ^yQE
(NOR), Portugal (PRT), Spain (ESP), Sweden (SWE), Switzerland (CHE), The United m\ S\3n
Kingdom (GBR), and The United States (USA). 7Xg?U'X
Task III of the PVPS programme, active since 1993, focuses on the exchange of information, 2&he($HIzg
quality assurance and technical surveys on stand alone PV applications. Stand-alone PV Bz / @c)
systems will continue to represent a significant PV market segment, not only in developing @;iXp>&&
countries, but also in the important home markets of industrial countries. Experts from 15 IEA !_~Uv xM +
countries are sharing their experiences in this area. UKtSm%\
This battery guide is intended for a wide use also close to the end customers to increase the .[:VSM7 T
hands on battery knowledge and thereby increase the system reliability and reduce the lifecycle r37[)kJ
cost for battery storage in small stand alone photovoltaic systems. Also some basic 0[T,O,y
environmental concerns are addressed. The report has been prepared under the supervision of Eectxyr?;N
Task III by: C ^w)|2o}
Bo Andersson, Catella Generics, (battery expertise) (SWE) 3mO; JXd
Staffan Ulvönäs, (illustrations) (SWE) wL}l`fRB
Bengt Perers, Vattenfall Utveckling AB (PV system and applications expertise) (SWE) R)5n 8
06 December 1999
