A commercial self-storage facility in Cleveland, Tennessee has integrated a Pytes HV48100 SE high-voltage battery system with approximately 100 kW of rooftop solar, adding energy storage and backup capability to its three-phase electrical system.
The installation combines a 61.44 kWh Pytes HV48100 SE battery system with a Sol-Ark 60K-3P-480V hybrid inverter on a 277/480 V three-phase site.
The system is designed around two practical objectives: increasing the amount of solar energy used on-site and maintaining power to selected critical loads during a grid outage.
For installers, the project also demonstrates an important commercial ESS design principle: PV capacity, inverter rating, battery energy capacity and battery power do not necessarily need to match one-to-one.
| Item | System Configuration |
|---|---|
| Location | Cleveland, Tennessee, USA |
| Application | Commercial self-storage facility |
| Battery | Pytes HV48100 SE |
| Battery Configuration | 12S1P |
| Energy Storage | 61.44 kWh |
| Nominal Battery Voltage | 614.4 VDC |
| Continuous Battery Current | 50 A |
| Continuous Battery Output | Approx. 30.7 kW at nominal voltage |
| Hybrid Inverter | 1 × Sol-Ark 60K-3P-480V |
| Solar PV | Approx. 100 kW rooftop PV |
| Site Electrical Service | 277/480 V, 3-phase |
| Grid Configuration | Non-export |
| Backup Strategy | Dedicated critical-load panel |
| Primary Applications | Solar self-consumption + critical-load backup |
One of the most useful aspects of this project is the relationship between the three main system ratings:
approximately 100 kW of solar PV, a 60 kW hybrid inverter, and approximately 30.7 kW of continuous battery output.
These numbers are intentionally different because each component serves a different purpose within the system. The rooftop PV determines how much solar generation is available. The Sol-Ark 60K manages power conversion and system operation, while the HV48100 SE provides stored energy for later use and backup.
With twelve HV48100 SE battery modules connected in series, the battery system provides 61.44 kWh of energy storage at a nominal 614.4 VDC. Based on the system's 50 A continuous current rating, this corresponds to approximately 30.7 kW of continuous battery-side power at nominal voltage.
Although the inverter is rated at 60 kW, the battery was not sized simply to reproduce the inverter's full nameplate output.
Instead, the storage configuration reflects what the battery is expected to do in this installation: store available solar energy, support selected loads after solar production decreases, and provide backup power to designated critical loads.
That distinction is particularly important in commercial ESS design, where inverter size, PV size and battery power requirements can be driven by very different operating conditions.
Rather than attempting to support every electrical load at the facility during an outage, the system uses a dedicated critical-load panel. This allows the battery system to prioritize the loads that matter most when utility power is unavailable.
For installers, defining the backup scope early in the design process can make a significant difference to system sizing. The required battery configuration should reflect the actual critical-load demand and desired backup duration rather than simply the building's total electrical service rating.
In this project, that approach allows the HV48100 SE system to provide practical backup capability without requiring the battery to match the full 60 kW inverter rating.
During daylight hours, rooftop solar can support facility loads while available excess generation is used to charge the battery. As solar production decreases, stored energy can be discharged to support site consumption and reduce the amount of electricity drawn from the utility.
The installation is configured for non-export operation, so the priority is to use solar energy within the facility rather than export surplus generation back to the grid. If utility power is lost, the Sol-Ark inverter and HV48100 SE battery system can continue supplying the loads connected to the dedicated critical-load panel.
A simplified operating flow is:
Day: PV → Facility Loads + Battery Charging
Low Solar / Evening: Battery → Facility Loads
Grid Outage: Battery → Sol-Ark → Critical Loads
This installation highlights a point that can easily be overlooked when designing commercial solar-plus-storage systems:
The inverter nameplate rating alone should not determine battery size.
A 60 kW inverter does not automatically require 60 kW of continuous battery power.
Battery selection should instead consider the actual application, including required backup load, runtime, battery discharge demand, solar contribution and overall operating strategy.
For this Tennessee project, the result is a system with:
~100 kW PV | 60 kW Inverter | 61.44 kWh Storage | ~30.7 kW Continuous Battery Output
Each component is sized according to the role it plays within the overall system.
The completed installation adds 61.44 kWh of high-voltage battery storage to the facility's solar energy system, enabling solar energy to be stored for use beyond daylight hours while also providing a dedicated source of backup power for selected critical loads.
Beyond the individual project, the installation offers a useful reference for installers working with 480 V commercial solar and storage systems.
It shows how PV capacity, inverter rating, battery energy capacity and battery power can be evaluated separately and brought together around the customer's actual operating requirements.
