Beyond Subsidies: Economic Performance of Optimized PV-BESS Configurations in Polish Residential Sector

This study examines the economic performance of residential photovoltaic systems combined with battery storage (PV-BESS) under Poland’s net-billing regime for a single-family household without subsidy support in 10-year operational horizon. These insights extend existing European evidence by demonstrating how net-billing fundamentally alters investment incentives. The analysis incorporates real production data from selected locations and realistic household consumption profiles. Results demonstrate that optimal system configuration (6 kWp PV with 15 kWh storage) achieves 64.3% reduction in grid electricity consumption and positive economic performance with NPV of EUR 599, IRR of 5.32%, B/C ratio of 1.124 and discounted payback period of 9.0 years. The optimized system can cover electricity demand in the summer half-year by over 90% and reduce local network stress by shifting surplus solar generation away from midday peaks. Residential PV-BESS systems can achieve economic efficiency in Polish conditions when properly optimized, though marginal profitability requires careful risk assessment regarding component costs, durability and electricity market conditions. For Polish energy policy, the findings indicate that net-billing creates strong incentives for regulatory instruments that promote higher self-consumption, which would enhance the economic role of residential storage.