Innovative milestones in inverter history

The PLENTICORE MP G3 from KOSTAL is a versatile hybrid inverter, ideally suited for residential photovoltaic systems. With a power range from 3 to 7 kW, it offers a wide selection for various needs.

Thanks to the optional power upgrade, the inverter can be flexibly adapted to increasing energy demands. The PLENTICORE MP G3 comes standard with 3 kW but can be expanded to 5.5 kW or even 7 kW. Like the three-phase PLENTICORE G3, the PLENTICORE MP G3 optionally offers the KOSTAL Backup Switch for reliable backup power in case of grid failures and DC surge protection against induced overvoltages.

The PLENTICORE MP G3 comes standard with Wi-Fi, AutoUpdate, the dedicated KOSTAL Solar App, the capability to connect a battery storage system, Modbus/Sunspec for smart home integration, and much more. Based on years of experience with the PLENTICORE series, the PLENTICORE MP G3 is a highly efficient, secure, and proven inverter – made in Germany.

The PLENTICORE G3 from KOSTAL is a versatile hybrid inverter, ideally suited for residential and even commercial photovoltaic systems. With a power range from 3 to 20 kW, it offers a broad selection for various requirements.

The three basic models – S, M, and L – each provide three power classes, which can also be activated retrospectively. With the KOSTAL Backup Switch, the PLENTICORE G3 enables a reliable backup power supply in case of grid failures, ensuring maximum energy security.

Additionally, the optional DC overvoltage protection provides extra security against induced overvoltages, while the self-learning shading management system ensures high efficiency even under challenging conditions. Naturally, the PLENTICORE G3 includes all the benefits of the PLENTICORE plus, such as three MPP trackers, Wi-Fi, AutoUpdate, and much more.

KOSTAL has expanded its product portfolio with the new PIKO CI 100 inverter, specifically designed for commercial photovoltaic systems. With a power output of 100 kW, the PIKO CI 100 delivers substantial performance for small to mid-sized commercial installations.

This inverter stands out with an efficiency of over 98% and offers sufficient reserves and flexibility for optimal string design, supporting a maximum system voltage of 1,100 V. Additionally, it can be oversized by 50% and is suitable for modules with a current of up to 20 A.

The PIKO CI 100 project inverter features DC disconnectors for reliable disconnection from the module voltage and comes standard with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for wireless communication via mobile phone and tablet. It is also compatible with various grid and park controllers, providing great flexibility for feed-in and energy management, direct marketing, and the control of active, reactive, and apparent power.

KOSTAL Automotive Electrical Systems has been developing vehicle components for a century. Combining this expertise with that of KOSTAL Solar Electric and designing a product to unite both areas was therefore the obvious next step and resulted in the AC wallbox ENECTOR AC 3.7/11. Awarded the German Design Award for its elegant appearance, it supplies a maximum of 3.7 kW or 11 kW in one to three phases with a current of up to 16 A per phase. Alongside outstanding form and function, it doesn’t fall short in terms of convenience either. The LED display indicates all important status messages and the charging status, while the 7.5-metre-long charging cable offers sufficient flexibility for even greater distances from the charging point (e.g. for a double garage).

In combination with the KOSTAL Smart Energy Meter, this presents the user with various intelligent and, above all, efficient vehicle-charging options. For example, it allows energy to be fed in from various sources (direct feed-in, battery, grid) in varying proportions. Management is covered by the KOSTAL Smart Energy Meter, the KOSTAL Solar App and the KOSTAL Solar Portal.

As the energy transition progresses, KOSTAL launches exactly what is needed at exactly the right time: a large-scale project inverter that can serve ever higher power demands and PV power capacity requirements.

Performance features include optimisation for outdoor use, reliability through weather resistance, variability in string design with up to four MPP trackers and operational safety thanks to integrated overvoltage features. To cut costs, the engineers designed the integrated Smart Switch, which eliminates the need for an external circuit breaker up to 135 kW.

The PIKO CI is compatible with other devices and very powerful. Its interfaces ensure that it works efficiently in multiple-inverter operation and at the same time is easy to set up, update, check and modulate with a mobile device via the PIKO CI app using WLAN and online communication. Future-proofing is also an important feature of the PIKO CI: the device is already set up for further growth in power demands and can therefore serve an increasing PV power demand – optimum power generation on a large scale too.

The innovative concept of the battery inverter continued to impress plant owners who operate a solar system and now want to retrofit a battery for storing PV power as they need a powerful and intelligent battery inverter that can store surplus solar power in storage units on its own and in a network. 

The market got the efficient specialist device it had long wanted in the form of the PLENTICORE BI. A battery inverter that creates independence: 5.5 and 10 kW, suitable for private use and impressively powerful for commercial customers. The PLENTICORE BI is compatible and easy to deploy in existing solar systems to effectively increase self-consumption and self-sufficiency. With 10 kW charging and discharging power, storage units with up to 66 kWh can be operated reliably and efficiently today.

The KOSTAL Smart Energy Meter is a versatile energy meter, perfectly tailored to all KOSTAL inverters. Thanks to its high computing power, the KOSTAL Smart Energy Meter is also prepared for future functions. Preconfigured compatibility with the PLENTICORE series allows for quick installation without additional settings. The device measures in real time across three phases and transmits the data via a standard interface to the inverters, allowing optimal integration into energy management.

Integration into the KOSTAL Solar Portal enables visualization of self-consumption and activates comfort features for the ENECTOR wallbox, such as Solar Pure Mode or Solar Plus Mode. These can be selected directly on the device or via the Solar App; an activation code is required to set up the wallbox.

With the PLENTICORE plus, the name says it all. This three-phase hybrid inverter impresses with its versatile applications – whether for power generation with up to 3 MPP trackers or for storing self-generated energy, including from CHP or cogeneration units. A battery can be connected during installation or added later.

As a true all-rounder, the PLENTICORE plus remains reliable, smart, and user-friendly. In its second generation, integrated Wi-Fi simplifies commissioning and monitoring. Two LAN ports allow for daisy chaining of multiple inverters. Four digital outputs offer enhanced control options, such as for heat pumps. The AutoUpdate function keeps the inverter technically up to date at all times.

KOSTAL added to its product range the first three-phase inverter specially designed for the project business. With six DC inputs, an MPP tracker and 36 kW AC power, the device therefore closed the gap in the PIKO family and, as another product component for the classic private customer base, for the first time ever served the specific project market segment.

KOSTAL understood very early on that the power requirements of inverters would increase hugely in the coming years. Therefore, in 2021, the company introduced the commercial project inverter called PIKO CI, which can now be flexibly designed to work on its own and offer a higher output in interconnected operation.

The exciting concept of creating a hybrid function for single-phase PV operation was achieved with the launch of the flexible PIKO MP inverter. The device started as a single-phase converter with 1.5 to 4.6 kW and in its later PIKO MP plus variant from 2019 provided the option of connecting up a storage unit of up to 5 kW.

KOSTAL’s reliable and powerful compact device met the huge demand seen in the single-phase PV system sector. As a solar inverter, battery inverter and hybrid inverter, the PIKO MP plus inverter was versatile when used in conjunction with the highly efficient KOSTAL Smart Energy Meter.

With the PIKO BA, KOSTAL introduced an innovative solution for the photovoltaic industry: as the first three-phase hybrid inverter with a bidirectional DC input for high-voltage batteries, it enabled higher power output and direct battery storage integration. For this concept, KOSTAL received the ees Award at Intersolar in 2015.

The PIKO BA offered power classes of 6, 8, and 10 kW, as well as emergency power supply with short switchover time. Initially, a Hoppecke lead-gel high-voltage battery was used, which was replaced in 2015 by a modern lithium solution based on lithium iron phosphate. The combination of higher voltage, lower currents, and efficient battery management allowed for easy retrofitting and high efficiency.

Even then, KOSTAL paved the way for electric mobility at home with this system solution. Innovative monitoring functions were added: household consumption and self-sufficiency could be measured and clearly displayed via the KOSTAL Solar Portal. Thanks to the elimination of an AC/DC conversion stage and intelligent surplus charging, the PIKO BA achieved maximum efficiency.

Thanks to the innovation of the PIKO device, KOSTAL launched an entire inverter family onto the solar market with the PIKO FUTURE. The PIKO FUTURE allowed installers to reliably design small, medium-sized and larger systems using four correspondingly powerful solar inverters from 3 to 20 kW. 

The inverter family covered a wide range of requirements. Single-phase smaller PV systems were catered for as were three-phase solar systems. The versatile design for these series was completely new. This meant that the PIKO FUTURE could handle larger currents and featured two network interfaces to enable interconnected operation. The complete system met many customer requirements and remained true to the KOSTAL philosophy of being able to offer flexible solutions with intelligent products.

Fascinated by the idea of increasing system safety through arc detection, KOSTAL developed the protective arc detection function for the PIKO 7, 8.3 and 10 kW inverters. Here, the voltage and current curve is measured over a certain period of time and evaluated by digital signal processing. If a characteristic typical of arcing occurs, the inverter immediately stops the current feed-in to the house grid. Perceived as a pioneering achievement at the time, this device feature reappears in future series.

Three-phase feed-in into the public supply grid to avoid imbalances is advantageous and suitable for the grids used in many European countries and connection points.

However, especially in Southern Europe, single-phase house connections are also common, so KOSTAL has introduced the single-phase models PIKO 3.0 and 3.6 for these purposes.

By connecting two AC bridge sections in parallel, it was possible to apply the circuit concept of the three-phase devices that had been tried and tested for this purpose.