Customer Guidelines for

Grid Connection of

Small Scale Distributed Generators

(SSDG)

up to 50 kW

9 t h D e ce m b e r 2 0 1 0

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Purpose Customer Equipment Types
These guidelines are intended to cover the The types of generating equipment covered by these
installation of Small Scale Distributed Generators guidelines includes:
(SSDGs) of capacity up to 50 kilowatts (kW) which
customers wish to connect to the CEB’s low voltage  Photovoltaic(PV)
grid via inverters.  Wind turbine
 Hydro
The total installed capacity of SSDGs is limited to
2MW or 200 installations whichever comes first. All of these generally produce direct current (DC)
The 2MW of installed capacity is categorised as electricity and must transmit their generated electricity
via inverters.
follows:
1MW: Residential customers Note: when a customer is operating an SSDG to
reduce its electricity bill, a storage battery may not be
1MW: other customer categories necessary. However, the customer may install one for
independent operation.
The guidelines do not cover engine-driven
Inverter Requirements
generators and green field installations.
The inverter should be of grid-interactive type, be of
good quality and performance in order to avoid mal-
It is intended that such renewable energy generating
operation or damage to household electrical
sources up to 50 kW be allowed to be connected to
appliances. The inverter must generate an AC voltage
the grid on the basis that:
having a good quality sinusoidal wave form with low
harmonic distortion. Only models which satisfy the
 The purpose of the source is to reduce the
requirements of the Grid Code shall be allowed to
customer’s electricity bills and for
connect to the grid.
environmental concerns.
An important safety requirement for the inverter is that
 The customer still requires a supply of
it must be prevented from back-feeding the CEB’s grid
electricity from the CEB’s grid.(i.e. Not Stand-
if the grid supply is externally de-energised. It should
alone System)
also be capable of restarting within a short period after
the external grid supply is restored.
The guidelines have been prepared in order to:
In addition, the inverter should protect the generating
 Promote customer installations which are safe
equipment from all faults as set out in the Grid Code.
for both the customer and the CEB line
maintenance personnel.
Planning and Selection
 Protect customer installations against damage
The CEB’s main involvement with the SSDGs is to
under fault conditions.
ensure compliance with the Grid Code for
interconnecting with the grid.
 Ensure that other CEB’s customers are not
The CEB will not be able to offer assistance in the
exposed to hazards or to disruptions of the
design and selection of installation.
quality of supply.
At the start of this project until further notice, the CEB
The primary concern of the CEB is with the mains
shall accept a ‘Certificate’ from the supplier of the
wiring and inverter features, which provide the
equipment certifying that the installer is well-versed
interface with the grid. The DC wiring of the
with the installation of the equipment. Furthermore,
renewable energy system and any batteries are the
the topics covered and the duration of the training shall
customer’s responsibility.
be mentioned on the ‘Certificate’.

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Installation and connection to grid
 The connection of an SSDG to the CEB’s grid
shall be done in accordance with the Electricity
Act.(See Annex 1 for the steps involved)
 The SSDGs should be installed strictly in
accordance with the instructions issued by the
manufacturer.
 The SSDG should comply with the
requirements of the Grid Code.
 The installation should be carried out by a
certified installer.
 The visible switch for isolating the SSDG
should be manually operated; lockable type
visibly marked and should also be accessible to
the CEB’s personnel.
 It is recommended that surge protection if not
included as part of the inverter be installed to
prevent external network surges from damaging
the SSDG.
 The CEB shall fix ‘SSDG label’ on the meter
box.
 The customer to display necessary information
at the SSDG as stated in the Grid Code.
Installation Approvals
 The customer to inform the CEB for inspection
upon completion of SSDG installation by
certified installer.
 The customer to submit a duly signed
‘Certificate of Installation’ (see annex 5 of
Grid Code) to the CEB.
 The CEB will issue a ‘Certificate of
Commissioning’ to the customer.
CEB Responsibilities
 The CEB is responsible for the transport of
electricity to the SSDG premises and to the
premises of all its other customers.
 The CEB must safeguard the safety of its
employees and others who carry out work on
its distribution network. Therefore the CEB
reserves the right to inspect the SSDG by
prior arrangement, to ensure that the SSDG
does not pose a hazard.
 The CEB shall not be liable to any damage
caused during cyclonic/surge/lightning or
other adverse conditions beyond its control
which may prevail during the installation and
operation of the SSDG.
Customer Responsibilities
 The customer is responsible for the safe
installation, operation and maintenance of
the SSDG. The installation must conform to
the requirements of the Grid Code and other
standards.
 The SSDG should be regularly inspected
and maintained in accordance with the
manufacturer’s instructions.
 The customer is responsible for the safety of
any person operating or maintaining the
SSDG and accessories which are on its
premises.
 The customer is responsible for fitting
adequate protective devices for the
protection of SSDG against the faults as
stated in the Grid Code.
Fees
The Customer will be charged for the followings:
1. Processing of Application Form
2. Connection of the SSDG to the CEB’s
grid.
3. Engineering review/distribution study if
required
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 4. Construction/modification of network if Insurance
required following the engineering review
as per (3) above. Customers having a household insurance policy are
(See Annex 3 of Grid Code) advised to contact its insurance company to check
coverage for the SSDG or alternatively to take a
separate insurance cover.
Energy pricing

The Feed in Tariff (FIT) for the kilowatt hours
(kWh) electricity generated by the SSDG is as per
Table A in Annex 2 of the Grid Code.
If the annual production/consumption (from
production) ratio is greater than 3, the tariff for the
following year shall be in accordance with Table B
in Annex 2 of the Grid Code.
Net metering
Application form
Customers seeking to install an SSDG must fill out
the SSDG Application Form.
Please provide all details requested on the
Application Form in order to avoid delays in
approval. The filled Application Form, technical
details and appropriate fees to be deposited at the
SSDG Unit at the CEB Head Office.

The CEB will replace the existing meter by a two Information and Queries
way electronic meter for registering both import
and export readings separately. For information on the Grid Code and Application
Form contact the SSDG Unit at the CEB Head
The Customer will consume the energy generated Office on 6011100.
by the SSDG and any excess of energy will be
exported to the CEB’s grid and metered as
‘export’.

Billing and Payment for energy exported

The Customer will receive import bill as per

current practice.

An export bill with a detachable SSDG Invoice

detailing the amount of energy exported to the
CEB’s grid will be given to the SSDG owner.

SSDG owner will have to sign on the invoice and

forward it back to the SSDG Unit at the CEB Head
Office at Curepipe.

Upon receipt of the signed SSDG Invoice, a

cheque will be issued and posted to the SSDG
owner.

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 Disclaimer

The purpose of this document is to assist the public to better understand the procedure for application, the
requirements of the Grid Code, the Feed-in-Tariffs and other related issues regarding Small Scale Distributed
Generation (SSDG).

Any prospective applicant willing to take advantage of the Small Scale Distributed Generation (SSDG) Scheme
is informed that:

I. Compliance to this Grid Code is mandatory

II. The provisions of the Electricity Act shall be adhered to

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 Annex 1- Connecting Small Scale Distributed Generators (SSDG) to the Grid

1. Contact SSDG Unit at CEB Head Office for a copy of the Grid Code for Small Scale Distributed Generators (SSDG) and prescribed
Application Form. Alternatively, this can be found on the CEB Website http://ceb.intnet.mu. This document contains all the information
required for the interconnection with the CEB’s low voltage network.

2. Duly filled SSDG Application Form, requested technical specifications and processing fee(see chapter 4) to be deposited at SSDG Unit, CEB
Head Office, Curepipe.

3. CEB checks and analyses the Application Form.

4. CEB informs applicant to publish notice in Government Gazette and in at least two newspapers.

5. Applicant publishes notice.Any person wishing to object to the application published shall send a written and reasoned objection to the CEB
with a copy thereof to the applicant within 14 days of the date of the publication.

6. CEB considers the objection.If there is no objection to the application or if there is an objection and it is rejected, the CEB shall initiate the
procedures with the President’s office for the granting of a permit. If the application satisfies all conditions as set down by Law, the permit
will be granted.

7. The applicant shall be given a non-transferrable permit as per the terms and conditions that will be laid down in a Connection Agreement to
be signed by the CEB and the applicant after successful testing of the latter’s installation.

8. Following the grant of the permit, the applicant pays the connection fee (Annex3) and shall complete the installation within a period of
twelve months from the date the permit was granted; otherwise the permit shall lapse.

9. Upon completion of installation, applicant/Installer shall submit a duly signed certificate of installation ( Annex 5) to the CEB.

10.CEB shall inspect and test the installation for compliance with the Grid Code requirements and standards.CEB will then issue a certificate of
commissioning to the Applicant.

11. Applicant signs a Connection Agreement.

12. CEB/Applicant shall then cause a proclamation to be published in the Government Gazette and two newspapers informing the public of the
start of operation of the SSDG.

13. SSDG in operation