Cold Storage & Pack-House Energy & Backup — Loads, Generators, Battery Storage & RFQ
In cold storage a two-hour outage during a heatwave writes off the load. Reciprocating and screw compressors also have brutal starting currents — genset sizing is dominated by inrush, not by kW-average.
How are these load assumptions derived?
Figures are reference values from typical commercial projects — real numbers depend on climate, crop, motor selection (DOL vs VFD), controls topology and outage-risk tolerance. Use them to frame the RFQ; final sizing is confirmed by the winning EPC and OEM as part of the engineered proposal.
Reference figures. Real specs and pricing come from the qualified suppliers that respond to your private RFQ. SeedMatchGroup does not resell equipment.
Core loads: refrigeration compressors, condensers, evaporator fans, cold-room lighting, pre-cooling / forced-air, hydro-coolers, defrost cycles and pack-house handling / weighing / labelling equipment.
Starting current is the sizing driver. Direct-on-line compressors need aggressive derates; soft-starters or VSD compressors dramatically shrink the genset kVA and improve fuel curves.
Typical load assumptions
Continuous vs peak vs critical (must-survive-an-outage) loads by project scale. Motor starting inrush is 4–7× nameplate for direct-on-line and ~1.5–2× on VFDs — genset kVA must cover the worst-case inrush without voltage collapse.
| Project scale | Continuous | Peak / inrush | Critical load | Runtime target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 t cold room | 8–15 kW | 25–45 kW | 6–10 kW | 24 h+ |
| 500 t cold store | 45–90 kW | 140–240 kW | 35–60 kW | 24 h+ |
| 2000 t cold + pack-house | 180–320 kW | 500–800 kW | 130–220 kW | 24 h+ |
| Multi-chamber DC (5000+ t) | 400–800 kW | 1100–1800 kW | 300–550 kW | 24 h+ |
Recommended generator & storage setups
Vendor-neutral reference stacks — diesel or gas generator, LFP battery storage, optional solar PV, ATS and controls. Hybrid stacks let solar and battery serve daytime load while the genset only starts on demand.
| Scale | Generator | Battery (LFP) | Solar PV | ATS / controls | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 t | 60–80 kVA diesel | 20–40 kWh LFP | 20–40 kWp | ATS + soft-starter | Solar covers noon peak; genset absorbs start inrush. |
| 500 t | 300–400 kVA prime | 80–150 kWh LFP | 120–250 kWp | ATS + EMS + VSD compressors | VSD compressors halve genset size vs DOL. |
| 2000 t + pack-house | 800–1000 kVA prime | 250–500 kWh LFP | 400–800 kWp | Paralleling gear + full EMS | Hybrid pays back fast where grid tariffs peak. |
| 5000+ t DC | 1500–2500 kVA (parallel) | 800–1500 kWh LFP | 1000–2500 kWp | SCADA + EMS + demand response | N+1 compressors and gensets; peak-shaving with battery. |
- Specify VSD compressors — smaller genset, better part-load efficiency, no massive inrush.
- N+1 compressor redundancy on any store above 200 t.
- Solar-first hybrid where daytime grid tariffs are high — cold storage load matches solar profile.
- Battery peak-shaving to cut grid demand charges (often > kWh cost).
- Temperature loggers and door alarms tied into UPS-backed controls.
Related energy resources
FAQ
RFQ — Cold storage energy & backup
Prefilled from this energy application. Review and adjust — a dedicated sourcing specialist dispatches the RFQ privately to qualified global suppliers and integrators.