The Solar for Localvolts Automation uses your Localvolts price to control the behaviour of your inverter(s).
You can adjust settings based on prices, schedule other control periods, and set when and how much power to produce. You can control how you curtail your inverters and limit exports when your sell price (FiT) is negative, or even switch off your inverters completely when your buy price is negative. Once you’ve set up your plan, your inverters will be automated based on your settings. Use the Solar for Localvolts plan to maximise your savings and avoid getting hit with unexpected costs!
So how does it work?
The Solar for Localvolts automation plan adjusts your inverter output so that exports are avoided when the Localvolts feed-in price goes negative.
When does the automation run?
Localvolts refresh their price every 5 minutes, so that's how often your Voltello device will check it. When the Localvolts feed-in tariff goes negative, Voltello will start to curtail your solar output. If you have an energy meter that we connect with (like a smart meter or consumption meter) this will usually involve limiting your exports so that you don't get charged for exporting your solar. Because Voltello checks the prices every 5 minutes, it could be a very brief adjustment in order to avoid a temporary negative price. Generally though, the inverter will remain in an adjusted state for the duration of the negative price event, which could be for several hours at a time.
How does Voltello access my Localvolts price?
Localvolts Electric have a public API that is available to its partners. We Voltello accesses the Localvolts API we do so on your behalf, using your NMI. When we use the Localvolts API we can access the prices for your premises, which includes the prices that you are buying energy for and also the prices that you are being paid for any surplus solar that you export. These are the prices we use when we automate your energy assets or appliances. Localvolts does not share any of your private information with us through this API, and you can remove our access to the API at any time.
How do I maintain control?
You are always in control of your automations using the Voltello app. You can suspend your automation plan at any time in the Voltello app.