System integration
Most projects combine equipment from several makers: batteries, inverters, solar, diesel generator (DG) set controllers, switchgear, chargers, meters and software. Each works on its own. As system integrators, we make them work together, and we take responsibility for the interfaces between them.
The interfaces
In EPRI's analysis of battery failures, most of the failed elements were in the balance of system and the controls, not in the cells. So we engineer the joins.
String design, fusing and protection coordinated so one rack can't feed a fault in another; insulation monitoring; cables sized with margin.
Power conversion system (PCS) settings, transformer and LT/HT panels, relay coordination, anti-islanding, earthing and surge protection, with grid settings agreed with the distribution company (DISCOM).
Changeover, ATS and synchronising panels reworked so the battery and the diesel or gas genset hand over cleanly, in both directions.
One control philosophy, run by the energy management system (EMS), across battery, solar inverters, genset controllers and chargers: who leads, who follows, and what happens when the grid goes.
Meters, the battery management system (BMS), PCS and chargers talking over Modbus, IEC 61850, IEC 60870-5-104 or the Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP). Protection signals are kept separate from monitoring networks, and remote access is controlled, with no default passwords.
Cooling, gas and smoke detection, suppression and ventilation interlocked with the BMS and PCS, so an alarm leads to a safe shutdown, not a surprise.
Plinths, drainage, cable trenches, fencing, access for maintenance and fire services, and corrosion protection near the coast.
The CEA's 2026 construction standards keep protection, interlocking and tripping channels physically and logically separate from SCADA and monitoring channels, and have the EMS take set-points over IEC 60870-5-104, Modbus TCP or IEC 61850.
Source: EPRI, Insights from EPRI's BESS Failure Incident Database: Analysis of Failure Root Cause (opens in a new tab) (May 2024).
Source: CEA, Technical Standards for Construction of Electrical Plants and Electric Lines (Amendment) Regulations, 2026 (opens in a new tab) (Gazette, 23 June 2026).
Architectures
Seven common ways a battery energy storage system (BESS) connects to the equipment already on a site, what each one involves, and the decisions to settle before design.
Add a battery with its own PCS to an existing solar plant, with minimal change on the solar side.
Solar and battery share an inverter; the battery can capture energy that would otherwise be clipped.
A hybrid controller decides when the diesel or gas genset starts; the battery handles transients and light loads; changeover is reworked.
The UPS keeps its short, instant job on the most sensitive loads; the battery system carries the wider site for longer and does daily work the rest of the time.
The battery buffers fast chargers, and charger power is managed dynamically against the site limit.
Grid-forming PCS, transfer switching and load shedding keep critical loads running when the grid is down.
Grid-forming PCS is an equipment feature we specify where a design needs it.
Several sites report to one monitoring layer (Energy 107), with common alarms and reports.
Source: NREL (now NLR), Evaluating the Technical and Economic Performance of PV Plus Storage Power Plants (opens in a new tab) (August 2017).
Vendor-neutral
We don't represent a single battery, inverter or charger maker, and we don't sell from a catalogue. When a project includes supply, we procure batteries, PCS, chargers, switchgear, meters and monitoring hardware for that project, scored against published criteria, and we show you the scores.
Commissioning
72% of failures with a known system age happened during construction, commissioning or the first two years of operation.
Accountability
When several makers each own a box, the gaps between the boxes can end up belonging to nobody. As integrator, we sign up for those gaps in the interface responsibility matrix.
| Interface | Typical position without a named integrator | With CHE Energy as integrator |
|---|---|---|
| Battery ↔ PCS | Battery maker and PCS maker each point to the other | CHE Energy |
| PCS ↔ site protection and grid | Electrical contractor, by default | CHE Energy |
| EMS ↔ genset controller | Often unassigned | CHE Energy |
| EMS ↔ chargers (OCPP) | The charger vendor, for its own units only | CHE Energy |
| Fire system ↔ BMS shutdown | Fire contractor and battery maker separately | CHE Energy |
| Meters ↔ reporting | The site team | CHE Energy |
“Typical position” describes a common pattern, not any named project.
Source: CEA, Technical Standards for Construction of Electrical Plants and Electric Lines (Amendment) Regulations, 2026 (opens in a new tab) (Gazette, 23 June 2026).
Source: CEA, Central Electricity Authority (Cyber Security in Power Sector) Regulations, 2026 (notification) (opens in a new tab) (31 July 2026).
Start with a conversation
A phone call is enough to start. If you have them, 12 months of electricity bills, 15-minute meter data, DG running hours and any EV plans let us come back with a first view of what fits.
