Grid-Scale Battery Energy Storage Systems worked example

HVAC Load with hvac connected load per bess container of 38 kW: a worked example

This scenario runs the hvac load calculation on the strong side: hvac connected load per bess container of 38 kW, with every other input held at its documented default. Use it when budgeting auxiliary load and operating cost for a BESS project and you need to know how much of the total site electricity bill is driven by thermal management HVAC in the battery containers.

The inputs for this scenario

  • HVAC connected load per BESS container: 38 kW (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 15)
  • HVAC operating hours per day: 24 hr (unchanged)
  • Site electricity rate: 0.09 $ / kWh (unchanged)
  • Usable MWh per BESS container: 4 MWh (unchanged)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Total HVAC energy cost per day = HVAC connected load x HVAC operating hours x site electricity rate) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 912 kWh for hvac energy consumed per day (kwh), the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 82.08 $ for total hvac thermal management cost per day.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 20.52 $ / piece for thermal management cost per mwh stored.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 3.42 $ / hr for hourly hvac thermal management cost.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where hvac connected load per bess container sits at 15 kW and the headline result is 360 kWh, this scenario comes in 153% above the baseline at 912 kWh.
  • Use it for O&M budgeting, comparing container thermal designs, and estimating the parasitic-load drag on station economics. Treat this as a target state: the delta against the baseline quantifies what the improvement is worth before you commit to chasing it.

Results at a glance

  • HVAC energy consumed per day (kWh): 912 kWh (headline result)
  • Total HVAC thermal management cost per day: 82.08 $
  • Thermal management cost per MWh stored: 20.52 $ / piece
  • Hourly HVAC thermal management cost: 3.42 $ / hr

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live HVAC Load calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.