For farms and rural businesses, energy availability can determine whether operations can grow. Pumps, refrigeration, processing equipment, ventilation, lighting, and workshop tools may all require more power than a limited rural grid connection can provide.
In this UK off-grid farm project, the customer had access only to single-phase electricity. Upgrading to a three-phase grid connection would have required a multi-million-pound infrastructure investment. Instead, the project team designed an off-grid solar, battery, inverter, and generator system built around Pytes lithium battery storage.
Project configuration
The system is designed to support substantial agricultural loads without a conventional grid upgrade. Its main components include:
- 180 kVA Victron Energy inverter system;
- approximately 500 kWh of Pytes lithium battery storage;
- 840 x 450 W solar panels, providing 378 kW of solar generation;
- backup generator integration for year-round resilience.
At the core of the storage platform is Pytes V5 Alpha Plus, a second-generation upgrade based on the proven V5 battery platform. The system stores solar energy, supports high-demand periods, and helps the farm operate beyond the limits of its existing grid connection.
Full-load testing before delivery
Before the equipment was transported to site, the project team completed full-load testing of the 180 kVA inverter system and Pytes battery storage.
During testing, the system was pushed to maximum load while every connection point was monitored with thermal imaging. Temperatures remained around 27°C, with no significant heat build-up detected.
This kind of validation is essential for large off-grid systems. Agricultural applications must perform under real operating conditions, often with high loads, changing weather, and limited tolerance for downtime.
Why V5 Alpha Plus was selected
Pytes V5 Alpha Plus is designed for residential, light commercial, and scalable storage applications. In this project, its modular architecture allows many battery units to become a large-capacity energy platform.
Key advantages include:
- emergency shutdown and upgraded breaker design;
- 3.84 kW nominal output power per battery;
- modular scalability for larger storage systems;
- integrated heating pad for wider operating conditions;
- flexible enclosure and bracket options;
- optional Wi-Fi monitoring and remote upgrade support.
Together, these features make the battery suitable for off-grid farms, commercial backup systems, hybrid solar projects, and rural sites where dependable storage is central to the design.
Avoiding the three-phase upgrade problem
The central challenge was not simply energy consumption. It was infrastructure access. The existing grid supply could not support all required agricultural loads, while a three-phase upgrade was financially unrealistic.
By combining solar PV, Pytes battery storage, Victron inverter technology, and generator backup, the farm gains a more flexible power system. Solar generation supplies renewable energy during the day, the battery stores energy for later use, and the generator provides resilience during extended low-solar periods or exceptional load events.
A model for rural energy independence
This project reflects a broader shift in agricultural energy management. As rural grid capacity remains limited in many areas, farms are looking for practical systems that combine renewable generation with scalable battery storage.
The project was designed, built, and tested by Callidus Trade, a UK-based Pytes and Victron Energy distributor specializing in solar, battery storage, off-grid, and hybrid power systems for professional installers.
For Pytes, the project demonstrates how battery storage can help rural businesses move beyond grid constraints. Instead of waiting for expensive infrastructure upgrades, farms can build resilient energy systems around solar generation, intelligent conversion, and scalable lithium storage.