The concept of Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) is very similar to the one of smart charging. Smart charging, also known as V1G, allows deciding how much capacity/energy to allocate to Electric Vehicle (EV) charging in real-time. V2G solutions go further and add the ability to redirect energy from a battery to the power grid to balance the network, especially when demand suddenly increases. Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) is not very different from V2G and includes V2H (Vehicle-to-Home), V2B (Vehicle-to-Building), and V2G.
Highlights
The transportation sector is undergoing a revolution that can be seen in the growing number of electric vehicles on our roads. In addition to having a much smaller ecological footprint than combustion vehicles, electric car batteries represent an energy storage option. Globally, 140 to 240 million electric vehicles are expected to be on the road by 2030. That means there will be at least 140 million energy sources on wheels, totalling about 7 TWh of storage capacity. Today, only a few models are compatible with V2G technology. New (distributed) energy sources like V2G are challenged to compete in traditional energy markets that are not fully aligned with their capabilities. Energy regulation is complex and provides an obstacle for emerging technologies like smart car charging and V2G to make an immediate impact.
Challenges and opportunities for DSOs
- V2G’s impact on power quality and voltage control has to be analysed.
- Connection solutions have to be defined for V2G (DC or AC).
- V2G emphasize (sub-)metering (DC or AC) needs.
- The capacity of V2G, on top of smart charging, to meet local congestion and curtailment needs and its implementation must be studied.
- The capacity of V2G to provide reserve and frequency services has to be studied.
- An energy aggregator can combine EV batteries and other distributed energy assets, such as solar and home batteries, into Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) that can supply and trade energy on electricity markets. DSOs have to investigate the load profiles of such VPPs.
- DSO’s technical and functional ways to call V2G have to be defined.
EDSO Considerations
- The outlook for V2X has yet to be clarified.
- In particular, the contribution of V2G in addition to smart charging must be specified.
- V2X services for other energy operators must not cause or aggravate congestion on the electricity network.
- V2X are to be incorporated in the Network Code on Requirements for Generators.
Last update: 28 September 2023