With the NextEnergy Payback Battery, you can decide how the battery is controlled. In the NextEnergy app, you can choose from different modes depending on your situation and how you want to use your battery.

Currently, the following modes are available:

• Self-consumption
• Self-consumption + EPEX charging (recommended)
• Price-driven (being phased out over time)

You can easily switch between modes at any time in the NextEnergy app.

Self-consumption

The Self-consumption mode is intended for households with solar panels who want to use as much of their own generated electricity as possible.

How does this mode work?

• The battery charges as soon as your solar panels produce more electricity than you are currently using.
• As soon as you use more electricity than you generate, the battery supplies energy to your home.
• This happens, for example, in the evening or when it is cloudy.
• The battery does not consider current electricity prices in this mode.

Who is this mode suitable for?

This mode is ideal if you:

• want to use as much of your own solar power as possible;
• want to feed less electricity back into the grid;
• want to be less dependent on the grid.

Note: this mode does not take energy prices into account. Even when electricity is very cheap or even free at certain times, the battery will still first use your own stored solar power.

Self-consumption + EPEX charging (recommended)

This mode combines the best of both worlds: maximum use of your own solar power and smart response to dynamic energy prices.

How does this mode work?

The battery:

• stores excess solar power for later use;
• also charges during cheap hours from the electricity grid when advantageous, for example on windy days;
• supplies the stored energy to your home during the most expensive hours of the day.

This way, you not only make optimal use of your own solar energy but also benefit from price differences in the energy market.

Who is this mode suitable for?

This mode is suitable for households with solar panels who:

• want to make optimal use of their own solar power;
• want to save extra with a dynamic energy contract;
• want to automatically benefit from low and high electricity prices.

For most households with solar panels, this is the recommended setting.

Price-driven

Note: the Price-driven mode is still available but will be phased out over time. We therefore recommend using Self-consumption + EPEX charging.

In the Price-driven mode, the battery is fully controlled based on the expected electricity prices.

How does this mode work?

The battery:

• charges during the cheapest hours of the day;
• discharges during the most expensive hours;
• also uses solar power during the set charging hours if available.

When your solar panels do not generate enough during these charging hours, the battery automatically supplements the difference with cheap electricity from the grid.

The number of charging and discharging hours depends on the number of battery modules.

What is the difference between the modes?

*The Price-driven mode remains available for now but will disappear in the future.

Can I switch between the modes?

Yes. You can switch between the available modes at any time in the NextEnergy app.

After changing, the battery will automatically apply the selected strategy. You do not need to manually adjust anything else.