The differences between on-grid, hybrid, and off-grid solar, how MEMR Regulation 2/2024 affects savings, and how to choose the system that makes most sense for you.
"Battery or no battery?" is the question we get most often from home, villa, and business owners who want to install solar. The answer depends on when you use electricity, how important it is to stay powered during an outage, and the rooftop solar rules currently in force.
| Aspect | On-grid | Hybrid | Off-grid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connected to PLN | Yes | Yes | No |
| Battery | No | Yes (LiFePO4) | Yes, larger |
| During a PLN outage | Shuts down too | Essential loads stay on | Unaffected |
| Upfront cost | Lowest | Medium | Highest |
| Good for | Offices, shops, villas with daytime loads | Homes & villas with evening–night loads that need backup | Sites without a grid, plantations, water pumps |
Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Regulation No. 2 of 2024 governs rooftop solar connected to the grid of electricity supply licence holders, including PLN. The points with the biggest effect on the economics:
Because exports aren't credited, each solar kWh only has value when it's used yourself — directly during the day or stored in a battery. This is why hybrid systems are becoming more relevant for homes.
kWp ≈ (daytime consumption per day × target coverage) ÷ (PSH × PR). PSH is the peak sun hours at your location; PR (performance ratio) represents losses from temperature, cabling, the inverter, and dust — usually 0.75–0.8.
Add the energy you want to store for the night to the daytime need, then size the battery: nominal capacity = energy needed ÷ DoD (depth of discharge, generally 90% for LiFePO4). If you need backup, also make sure the inverter's power (kW) is enough for essential loads.
Design for the worst month (lowest irradiance), add days of autonomy for consecutive cloudy days, and provide a generator or other backup source if loads are critical.
All these calculations are automated in the Balieka Solar Calculator, complete with a choice of Growatt, Huawei, and GoodWe inverters and compatible LiFePO4 batteries.
Hybrid inverters now come with monitoring apps, scheduling modes (for example discharging the battery at peak load), and readiness for electric vehicle chargers. For businesses, production and consumption data can feed into the same energy dashboard as other operational systems.
Yes, by adding a hybrid inverter or an AC-coupled battery. It's cheaper to choose a battery-ready hybrid inverter from the start.
It depends on the inverter's power and the battery capacity. Usually only essential loads are separated onto a backup circuit (lights, fridge, router, pump, CCTV).
Not necessarily. Larger batteries and backup for the rainy season usually make off-grid the most expensive per kWh; it suits sites where the grid genuinely isn't available.
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