Renewable Energy Equipment Selection by Application | Fenarro

Introduction

A factory adding rooftop solar, a developer building a solar farm, and an operator planning EV charging bays all need different electrical equipment. Even when a project combines generation, batteries, and charging, selecting the largest available product rarely produces the best system.

The starting point is the application: where electricity is generated, when it is needed, how equipment connects, and which operating limits the site must respect.

This guide explains renewable energy equipment selection through six practical scenarios. It connects typical project requirements with products in Fenarro’s new energy solutions portfolio, helping owners, contractors, and procurement teams prepare a clearer equipment enquiry.

Renewable Energy Equipment Selection by Application

Use this table as an initial shortlist. The recommended products are candidates for technical review, not a complete system design or a requirement to install every listed item.

1. Rooftop Solar: Choosing a PV Grid-Tied Box or Cabinet

A rooftop PV project needs a suitable interface between inverter output and the building or utility connection. The equipment must match the electrical arrangement and the required protection and metering scheme.

Do not choose the enclosure solely from the rooftop area or the solar module capacity. Inverter output voltage, circuit count, current, fault conditions, and utility requirements are more useful inputs.

Small rooftop solar grid connection equipment

For a residence, shop, farm building, or small commercial property, evaluate the BWX photovoltaic grid-tied combiner box. Fenarro describes it as a compact, wall-mountable interconnection enclosure bringing together metering, protection, and isolation functions.

Ask for the proposed circuit diagram and confirm the included devices. Metering arrangements, residual-current protection, surge protection, enclosure suitability, and incoming or outgoing terminals need to match the project.

Despite the term “combiner box,” this product is presented for the grid-connected AC side. It should not be substituted for a DC string combiner without verifying the intended circuit and ratings.

Commercial rooftop PV with multiple inverter outputs

For projects requiring a cabinet-based AC collection arrangement, consider the BWG photovoltaic grid-tied cabinet. Its stated role is collecting inverter outputs and providing associated protection and a downstream interface.

A useful enquiry includes:

• Inverter quantity, output voltage, and maximum AC current.

• Required incoming and outgoing circuits.

• Protection coordination and prospective fault current.

• Metering, monitoring, and export-control interfaces.

• Cable entry, installation location, and expansion needs.

BWX and BWG should be compared through their offered configurations. Avoid a universal power threshold that assigns every project above a certain kilowatt value to one enclosure type.

2. Solar Farms: When to Consider a Photovoltaic Box-Type Substation

A larger solar project may collect inverter output at low voltage and connect to a medium-voltage collection network. That creates requirements for transformation, switching, protection, and physical interfaces.

The YB-GT photovoltaic box-type substation is Fenarro’s product to evaluate for this role. Its published description combines low-voltage collection, a step-up transformer, medium-voltage equipment, and monitoring or protection functions in an integrated arrangement.

Solar farm step-up substation selection

Begin with the approved single-line diagram. Identify where the inverter ends, where collection begins, and which party supplies each connecting circuit.

Ask the supplier to confirm transformer capacity and voltage ratio, medium-voltage switching duties, earthing arrangements, metering location, protection interfaces, and site conditions. Also define transport limits, foundation requirements, cable connections, and commissioning responsibilities.

A rooftop project can also need voltage transformation; a solar farm may use a different collection architecture. The requirement comes from the network arrangement rather than the project label.

Factory integration can simplify interfaces, but the supply boundary still matters. Confirm whether external cabling, utility communication, site tests, and final connection approval are included.

3. Commercial and Industrial Storage: Match the Cabinet to the Operating Goal

A factory, warehouse, or commercial building may investigate battery storage to move energy between operating periods, absorb surplus solar generation, or manage a defined demand limit.

The AC380 liquid/air cooled energy storage cabinet is the relevant Fenarro product for an initial commercial battery storage enquiry. The product page describes an integrated battery energy storage system with battery management, power conversion, thermal management, and protective systems.

How to select a commercial energy storage cabinet

Specify both power in kW and usable energy in kWh. Power describes the charging or discharging rate; energy describes how much can be stored and delivered within the agreed operating limits.

For illustration, an idealized requirement of 100 kW for two hours represents 200 kWh delivered to the load. This is not a proposed AC380 rating. Real sizing must consider conversion losses, usable state-of-charge limits, auxiliary consumption, operating reserves, and capacity changes over time.

Provide time-series load and PV data where available. State whether the priority is solar self-consumption, a demand ceiling, time-based dispatch, or a combination. Those objectives can compete for the same battery capacity.

For liquid versus air cooling, request performance under the actual ambient conditions and duty cycle. Compare auxiliary consumption, service requirements, thermal limits, and the offered warranty conditions rather than assuming one cooling method always provides the better result.

Battery storage does not automatically provide backup power

If continuity during an outage is required, define the critical loads, starting requirements, acceptable interruption time, and target duration.

Confirm the proposed system’s islanding arrangement, grid isolation, grid-forming capability where needed, transfer equipment, protection changes, and reconnection logic. A grid-connected storage cabinet alone does not establish that an entire facility can operate independently during an outage.

4. Homes, Offices and Hotels: AC Charging for Longer Parking Periods

When vehicles remain parked for several hours, AC charging may meet their daily energy needs without requiring the highest charger power.

The Fenarro 7 kW AC charging pile is an option to evaluate for homes, workplace parking, apartments, and destination charging.

Workplace EV charging equipment selection

Start with the energy each vehicle needs and the time available. For example, a vehicle needing 28 kWh during an eight-hour parking period requires an idealized average of 3.5 kW before losses. A compatible 7 kW charging point could provide scheduling flexibility, but the actual delivered power depends on the vehicle, supply, and control arrangement.

Confirm the connector, electrical supply, vehicle onboard charging limit, user access, metering, billing, and any required load management. Optional connectivity should be specified explicitly.

For multiple bays, review the whole building load. Several chargers operating together can create a different supply requirement from a single charging point. Ask how charging limits are enforced and what happens if communications fail.

Solar generation may help supply daytime workplace charging. Overnight residential charging has a different relationship with solar output and may require a different operating strategy.

5. Public Charging and Fleet Depots: Integrated DC Charger or Flexible Stack?

Sites with shorter charging windows or higher vehicle throughput should assess DC charging against their vehicle mix and available supply.

Fenarro offers two architectures worth comparing: an integrated dual-gun DC charging pile and a 240–720 kW flexible charging stack.

Integrated DC fast charging for public sites

An integrated charger groups power conversion and control equipment in one unit. Evaluate this approach when a site needs a defined number of charging positions and an installation arrangement suited to standalone chargers.

For a dual-connector configuration, confirm total available power and how it is shared. Two connectors do not imply that each can deliver the full station rating simultaneously.

Request the output voltage range, maximum current, connector options, simultaneous operating limits, backend compatibility, and service arrangements. A high nameplate power does not guarantee a fixed charging time for every vehicle.

Flexible charging stacks for multiple charging bays

A flexible stack uses centralized power equipment to allocate capacity among dispensers. This can be relevant to charging hubs and fleet depots with varying simultaneous demand.

The stack rating describes a shared power pool, not necessarily the output at each dispenser. Ask for the allocation rules, per-connector limits, module increments, cable restrictions, and expansion conditions.

Fleet planning should include arrival times, departure deadlines, energy required per vehicle, and overlapping charging sessions. A depot with overnight parking may prioritize coordinated charging over maximum power at every bay. A site with short turnaround windows needs a different schedule and capacity assessment.

6. Solar, Storage and EV Charging: Equipment for an Integrated Energy Site

An industrial park, logistics campus, or commercial property may combine rooftop PV, a battery, and charging infrastructure. The value of this arrangement depends on how the equipment operates together.

A preliminary equipment shortlist could include BWG for AC PV collection, AC380 for storage, and AC or DC chargers matched to parking patterns. YB-GT becomes relevant if the electrical design requires its transformation and connection functions.

Solar battery storage and EV charging integration

Define the operating rules before ordering equipment:

• How much power can the site import or export?

• Which loads have priority?

• When may the battery charge from PV or the grid?

• How is charging reduced when the import limit is approached?

• Which controller coordinates the equipment?

• What operating state applies after a communication fault?

Do not assume separate products communicate automatically. Request an interface schedule covering meters, controllers, inverters, storage, and chargers, with clear responsibility for integration and testing.

Storage can support a charging peak within its available power and energy limits. It cannot remove the need to check sustained demand or replenish the energy used.

What Information Should You Send Before Requesting a Quote?

A clear enquiry helps avoid incomplete equipment recommendations. Prepare:

1. Application and operating goal: rooftop solar, storage, destination charging, fast charging, or a combined site.

2. Electrical information: single-line diagram, connection voltage, supply capacity, and relevant fault data.

3. Operating data: load profile, expected PV output, charging schedule, and expansion plan.

4. Site conditions: location, temperature, altitude, exposure, access, and available space.

5. Controls and approvals: utility conditions, export limits, communication requirements, and applicable project standards.

6. Supply boundary: installation, cabling, software, commissioning, documentation, training, and after-sales scope.

For supplier evaluation, review Fenarro’s manufacturing information, then request the equipment-specific documents required for the order.