Foreword Kyf,<z F
The international Energy Agency (IEA) founded in November 1974, is an autonomous body FAkrM?0/
within the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development {\ 1:2UKkr
(OECD) which carries out a comprehensive programme of energy co-operation among its 23 oZD+ AF$R
member countries. The European Commission also participates in the work of the Agency. KKB rw+)AJ
The IEA PhotoVoltaic Power Systems Programme (PVPS) is one of the collaborative R&D |r U?
agreements established within the IEA, and since 1993, its Participants have been conducting a ; _ziRy
variety of joint projects in the applications of Photovoltaic conversion of solar energy into h23 "<
electricity. Bi.,@7| >
The Overall programme is headed by an Executive Committee composed of one representative I P LKOT~
from each participating country, while the management of individual research projects (Tasks) W E{fu{x
is the responsibility of Operating Agents. Currently nine Tasks have been established in the - w{`/
IEA PVPS programme. D6$*#D3U
The Twenty one members are: Australia (AUS), Austria (AUT), Canada (CAN), Denmark kB)u@`</mV
(DNK), European Commission, Finland (FIN), France (FRA), Germany (DEU), Israel (ISR), %O69A$Q[m
Italy (ITA), Japan (JPN), Korea (KOR), Mexico (MEX), The Netherlands (NLD), Norway ,QeJ ;U
(NOR), Portugal (PRT), Spain (ESP), Sweden (SWE), Switzerland (CHE), The United :F |ll?
Kingdom (GBR), and The United States (USA). t3qPo cYQ
Task III of the PVPS programme, active since 1993, focuses on the exchange of information, g< E[IR
quality assurance and technical surveys on stand alone PV applications. Stand-alone PV %,1x Ol4l
systems will continue to represent a significant PV market segment, not only in developing vGCv J*4!
countries, but also in the important home markets of industrial countries. Experts from 15 IEA afw`Heaa2(
countries are sharing their experiences in this area. _o52#Q4
This battery guide is intended for a wide use also close to the end customers to increase the o2 ;
hands on battery knowledge and thereby increase the system reliability and reduce the lifecycle *;&[q{hz
cost for battery storage in small stand alone photovoltaic systems. Also some basic AMw#_8Y
environmental concerns are addressed. The report has been prepared under the supervision of qj7 }]T_
Task III by: tD~
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Bo Andersson, Catella Generics, (battery expertise) (SWE) e=cb%
Staffan Ulvönäs, (illustrations) (SWE) #n7F7X
Bengt Perers, Vattenfall Utveckling AB (PV system and applications expertise) (SWE) tEN8S]X
06 December 1999
