Foreword RY8;bUSR
The international Energy Agency (IEA) founded in November 1974, is an autonomous body $W<H[k&(B
within the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development fIu5d6;'
(OECD) which carries out a comprehensive programme of energy co-operation among its 23 >_!pg<{,
member countries. The European Commission also participates in the work of the Agency. (\{9W
The IEA PhotoVoltaic Power Systems Programme (PVPS) is one of the collaborative R&D S$HzuK\f
agreements established within the IEA, and since 1993, its Participants have been conducting a ,B(UkPGT
variety of joint projects in the applications of Photovoltaic conversion of solar energy into #oSQWC=T
electricity. TRL4r_
The Overall programme is headed by an Executive Committee composed of one representative \K.i8f,
from each participating country, while the management of individual research projects (Tasks) #O6SEK|Z
is the responsibility of Operating Agents. Currently nine Tasks have been established in the %6j|/|#]
IEA PVPS programme. ^W5rL@h_
The Twenty one members are: Australia (AUS), Austria (AUT), Canada (CAN), Denmark eS8tsI
(DNK), European Commission, Finland (FIN), France (FRA), Germany (DEU), Israel (ISR), Q.7Rv
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Italy (ITA), Japan (JPN), Korea (KOR), Mexico (MEX), The Netherlands (NLD), Norway 'g$~ij ;x
(NOR), Portugal (PRT), Spain (ESP), Sweden (SWE), Switzerland (CHE), The United :~3sW< PR
Kingdom (GBR), and The United States (USA). aR6?+`6<
Task III of the PVPS programme, active since 1993, focuses on the exchange of information, zNofI$U
quality assurance and technical surveys on stand alone PV applications. Stand-alone PV }jBr[S5
systems will continue to represent a significant PV market segment, not only in developing W"? |O Q'
countries, but also in the important home markets of industrial countries. Experts from 15 IEA v%n'_2J =^
countries are sharing their experiences in this area. [wG?&l$.KB
This battery guide is intended for a wide use also close to the end customers to increase the 8+{WH/}y8
hands on battery knowledge and thereby increase the system reliability and reduce the lifecycle 2hdi)C,7Y
cost for battery storage in small stand alone photovoltaic systems. Also some basic VJJGTkm
environmental concerns are addressed. The report has been prepared under the supervision of >gM|:FG
Task III by: +Gqh
Bo Andersson, Catella Generics, (battery expertise) (SWE) e;~[PYeu
Staffan Ulvönäs, (illustrations) (SWE) yS p]+
Bengt Perers, Vattenfall Utveckling AB (PV system and applications expertise) (SWE) $j0]+vT
06 December 1999