Earlier this month, General Motors announced its plans to steer vehicle-to-grid charging into the mainstream. The automaker will incorporate this capability into all new EVs (and some existing ones). Eventually, GM drivers could sell these electrons back to their utilities—but first, the company must wrap up pilot programs to work out the kinks.
GM is now testing this concept with PG&E and DTE, and it’s also in conversations with around 10 utilities, the company told Reuters.
In PG&E territory, there are roughly 900K EVs on the road. This offers a huge opportunity to tap into these “rolling power plants” and turn them into a “new source of revenue and support grid reliability,” Paul Doherty, manager of clean energy and innovation communications at PG&E, told Energy Central.
The utility has big plans: PG&E wants “millions” of EVs participating in both managed charging and vehicle-to-grid export over the next five to ten years, Doherty said. “Our overall goal is to create the most robust vehicle-grid integration portfolio in the world.” But first, the utility aims to coordinate a fleet of 52K grid-balancing GM EVs by 2030.
It isn’t just GM getting in on the V2G action. ChargeScape, a software platform that connects utilities, carmakers, and EV drivers, works with over seven auto companies.
The ratepayer relief angle: Beyond adding much-needed backup capacity, EVs can lower customer bills. That's because they help utilities get more out of existing grid infrastructure (and avoid expensive upgrades), Doherty said. Managed charging can also reduce peak load, further curbing energy costs.
But for these benefits to catch on widely, we have to hook up more EVs to the grid. “You need to reach a certain tipping point to scale,” Elta Koliou, principal of grids and utilities at market intelligence firm Currence, told Energy Central. Despite federal pushback, EVs are projected to make up around 8% of US cars by 2035. And by 2050—when annual US electricity consumption is set to jump by over 55%—they could contribute 65% of new car sales.
The true value of EVs, according to Koliou? Grid synergy: “Being able to marry what the vehicle flexibility can do with other DERs.”