Wattwatchers is bundling hardware and software to transform the role of data in making the renewable energy revolution productive, easy and cost-effective.
Australia is seeing an unprecedented boom in investor-financed rooftop solar PV – with systems located behind the meter, on commercial buildings, selling electricity to owners and tenants under Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs).
Since 2014, Wattwatchers has forged a leading position as a device supplier and data enabler in the solar monitoring space in Australia. We’ve achieved this by creating flexible hardware and enabling real-time data streams to accurately show a building’s solar generation, grid imports and exports, and self-consumption on-site – all in the one package.
Now we’ve added an innovative dual metering and monitoring solution for Solar PPAs.
BILLING & PERFORMANCE
Energy data is vital to optimising Solar PPAs in two key areas:
BILLING – which requires a meter that meets the pattern approval criteria of the National Measurement Institute (NMI)*
PERFORMANCE – which requires real-time, accurate, highly-granular data delivered through the cloud
*AER Quarterly Compliance – https://www.aer.gov.au/system/files/Quarterly%20Compliance%20Report%20January%20-%20March%202018%20.pdf
When Wattwatchers realised that there is no single solution in the marketplace that can do both, cost effectively, we decided to create one. It’s a bundle that combines a simple non-communicating NMI pattern approved meter with a high-performing, cellular-communicating, multi-channel Wattwatchers device.
We call it the Auditor 6M+One. It comes in a 3-phase version, which is the standard for commercial sites, and also a single-phase version for typical residential applications. It’s ultra-compact, easy to install, and connects to the cloud out-of-the-box, as soon as it powers up.
The dual meter solution deals with the hardware side of the Solar PPA equation. But the software side also needs to be addressed to provide a full-stack solution, which is where Wattwatchers’ cloud infrastructure and Energy Data Hub* business model come into play.
*The Energy Data Hub is Wattwatchers’ cloud infrastructure, which has 40+ integrations with software-as-a-service (SaaS) providers, energy services companies (ESCOs) and utility portals.
CERTAINTY & CHOICE
Proven, high-performing software choices that Wattwatchers supports include:
BILLING – leading Australian billing solutions provider Improv, which provides a comprehensive suite of billing-related services
PERFORMANCE – best-in-class Australian solar performance monitoring dashboard Solar Analytics, the real-time specialists in optimising solar PV both operationally and financially
SCHOOLS – innovative software platform providers Solar Schools combine operational and educational aspects of energy management for schools, including gamification
ENTRY-LEVEL – basic in-house dashboard for visualising circuit-level electricity flows mydata.energy
BRING-YOUR-OWN – integrate with the Wattwatchers 3.0 cloud infrastructure via the Wattwatchers API and use the software of the client’s own choice
DATA & VALUE
Getting data right is vital in the increasingly competitive Solar PPA investment space, adding value in key areas including:
- Ensuring that billing is under control – the electricity sector has its own horror stories of companies, including top-tier retailers, underestimating the complexity of providing an effective billing service, or just getting it expensively wrong
- Providing institutional customers with reporting and assurance – as large commercial chains and property-based groups sign up for major PPA contracts, quality data allows providers to analyse, aggregate and report the performance of large and complex portfolios, and meet sustainability reporting obligations
- Contractor compliance and quality control – PPA investors often use multiple solar installation groups to roll out their PV systems, so consistent data at fleet, sub-fleet and site levels allows them to remotely monitor, assess and compare the quality of work different suppliers
- Operations and maintenance – reliable and intelligent performance monitoring streamlines ongoing maintenance of solar assets, minimising repair truck rolls and helping investors to manage warranty obligations from their suppliers
- Building trust in the PPA transactions – data can be shared with customers through apps, providing authentication of electricity consumption
The Auditor 6M+One combined with the Wattwatchers Energy Data Hub is a one-stop shop for metering and monitoring Solar PPAs, and makes it easy to mix and match the services required for productive, easy, cost-effective solutions.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Telephone +61 2 83167540 or email info@wattwatchers.com.au
