Can Electric Vehicles Help Power the Grid?

In addition to their environmental and economic benefits, electric vehicles (EVs) have the potential to supply power to the grid. Called vehicle-to-grid or V2G, the technology enables EVs to function as batteries, storing energy and then feeding it back to the grid as needed. The potential benefits of this technology include:

• Remote locations are protected in extreme weather events.
• Backup power for individual homes and buildings.
• Building of additional power plants is avoided.
• Differences in peak and valley loads are reduced by 50%.
• Expanded storage allows capturing more renewable energy.
• Cost of deployment is lower than stationary storage.

V2G also reduces energy costs and price volatility for customers. A recreation center in Boulder, Colo., used a V2G Nissan Leaf to reduce the city’s utility bill by about $270 a month. The Colorado Energy Office estimates that each EV with a V2G system creates $600 over its lifetime in benefits to utility customers.

Hitting the road

Vehicles in the U.S. offering V2G capabilities include the Nissan Leaf and the Ford F-150 Lightning. V2G requires bidirectional charging hardware and charging station software to communicate with the grid. The F-150 Lightning, for example, can detect a power outage and automatically feed power back into the home through the vehicle's charging port.

Besides Nissan and Ford, European auto manufacturers are adding V2G or V2H (Vehicle to Home) to some models, including Audi, Fiat-Chrysler and Porsche. Porsche’s pilot program integrated five Taycan EVs and its Home Energy Manager to assess how they could help stabilize the grid. According to some experts, up to half of new EVs could have V2G capabilities by 2030.

Commercial vehicles, especially last-mile delivery fleets and electric school buses, are being integrated with V2G capabilities. Energy is supplied back to the grid during peak hours when the vehicles aren’t operating. In one successful pilot program, a fleet of five electric buses at the White Plains School District in New York supplies electricity back to the grid for use by other customers.

Potential roadblocks

Implementing V2G requires a significant investment. Other barriers include:

• EV owners require a large incentive to participate.
• There’s a lack of national regulations for V2G integration.
• Scale up is required to reduce costs. Several startups are addressing this issue.
• Utility upgrades to local distribution are required, as well as agreements on software standards.
• There’s a lack of bidirectional support in charging protocols.

Faster degradation of batteries is another potential problem. Although several studies indicate that bidirectional charging is less demanding than driving, more research is needed.

Collaboration between all industry players is critical for V2G to become an effective grid storage solution. Such collaboration will help the grid add more renewable energy and accelerate the adoption of EVs.