What is Reactive Power?

Reactive power is the power component in an electrical grid that does no work (is not converted to energy) but is required for inductive and capacitive loads to operate. Its unit is kVAr (kilovolt-ampere reactive). Motors, transformers and coils draw reactive power to build a magnetic field; this power needlessly burdens the grid and increases transmission losses.

In a facility, total apparent power (kVA) is the vector sum of active power (kW) and reactive power (kVAr). As reactive power rises, the power factor (cosφ) drops and the facility risks a reactive penalty. Reactive power is therefore balanced with compensation: capacitors produce capacitive reactive power to offset inductive reactive power.

Measuring and managing reactive power is critical both to avoid reactive penalties and to improve grid efficiency. An energy analyzer measures inductive and capacitive reactive power separately; SolarTools monitors these values continuously and warns on limit breaches.