EVs charge their own batteries when renewable energy is ripe — typically midday — and then discharge some of that electricity when power demand is high and renewable generation is low
Paul Kershaw is not a God — that would be his dog, “God” — but he does harness the power of the wind and sun.
Kershaw is one of 350 UK residents who have been pumping electricity from their vehicles to surrounding homes and businesses since 2018, a nascent bit of energy arbitrage known as vehicle-to-grid charging, or V2G. The idea is for EVs to charge their own batteries when renewable energy is ripe — typically midday — and then discharge some of that electricity when power demand is high and renewable generation is low, usually around 5 to 10pm.
The result is a wholesale market that whipsaws wildly through the course of any given day and has only been worsened by the war in Ukraine and recent heatwaves. In the UK these days, the price even goes negative a few hundred times a year; utilities are actually paying market participants to consume their electricity.
That trajectory also suggests a potential flywheel dynamic. Ultimately, the ability to function as a tiny power plant may convince EV-curious consumers — or even EV sceptics — to take the leap. And if bidirectional charging sparks EV adoption, it will, in turn, spark more V2G capacity. “If you look at the marketing from car companies, it’s pretty high up there,” says Ryan Fisher, an analyst at clean energy research group BloombergNEF. “And people just kind of want that next level of fancy.
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