Foreword 'nK~'PZ,
The international Energy Agency (IEA) founded in November 1974, is an autonomous body #1$}S=8*f
within the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ;^l_i4A
(OECD) which carries out a comprehensive programme of energy co-operation among its 23 fo\\o4Q yh
member countries. The European Commission also participates in the work of the Agency. f|xLKcOP
The IEA PhotoVoltaic Power Systems Programme (PVPS) is one of the collaborative R&D z^s ST
agreements established within the IEA, and since 1993, its Participants have been conducting a ${U6=
variety of joint projects in the applications of Photovoltaic conversion of solar energy into J- J3=JG
electricity. b "8FlZ$
The Overall programme is headed by an Executive Committee composed of one representative H?}wl%
from each participating country, while the management of individual research projects (Tasks) Fc0jQ@4=
is the responsibility of Operating Agents. Currently nine Tasks have been established in the !Y;<:zx5
IEA PVPS programme. ~4
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The Twenty one members are: Australia (AUS), Austria (AUT), Canada (CAN), Denmark ?gV'(3
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(DNK), European Commission, Finland (FIN), France (FRA), Germany (DEU), Israel (ISR), b?kPN:U#N/
Italy (ITA), Japan (JPN), Korea (KOR), Mexico (MEX), The Netherlands (NLD), Norway ~Sy-ga J
(NOR), Portugal (PRT), Spain (ESP), Sweden (SWE), Switzerland (CHE), The United ccO
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Kingdom (GBR), and The United States (USA). 2
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Task III of the PVPS programme, active since 1993, focuses on the exchange of information, |#TXE|#ux
quality assurance and technical surveys on stand alone PV applications. Stand-alone PV = cfm= +
systems will continue to represent a significant PV market segment, not only in developing v`)m">e*w
countries, but also in the important home markets of industrial countries. Experts from 15 IEA i+~QDo (Pi
countries are sharing their experiences in this area. Wp*sP Z
This battery guide is intended for a wide use also close to the end customers to increase the 6MrKi|'X@
hands on battery knowledge and thereby increase the system reliability and reduce the lifecycle ;] &-MFv#
cost for battery storage in small stand alone photovoltaic systems. Also some basic $P?{O3:V
environmental concerns are addressed. The report has been prepared under the supervision of fkW ( Dt,
Task III by: R!{7OkC
Bo Andersson, Catella Generics, (battery expertise) (SWE) #t5juX9Ho9
Staffan Ulvönäs, (illustrations) (SWE) X} apxSd"
Bengt Perers, Vattenfall Utveckling AB (PV system and applications expertise) (SWE) >rwYDT#m]
06 December 1999
