Project Bus2Grid will explore V2G charging with buses
A British-funded consortium will investigate vehicle-to-grid charging with a fleet of 30 electric buses, with their sights set on the London energy system.
The consortium includes the University of Leeds, UK Power Networks, SSE Enterprise and the bus manufacturer BYD, and is part of the V2G competition, which is funded by the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV). The University of Leeds will be focusing on business model design and barriers to market analysis, while BYD will supply the buses for the consortium.
Transport Minister, Jesse Norman said: “This project is at the cutting edge of its field, and it could revolutionise the ways we store and manage electricity, both now and in the future.” While the concept of V2G technology is not new, and small pilot projects are already underway, this is the first project to explore the technology on this scale, and using public transportation as a basis, rather than individual EVs.
Ian Cameron, the head of innovation at UK Power Networks had the following to say on the advantages over V2G technology using personal EVs: “A fleet of bus batteries harnesses large amounts of energy when charged and they have are habitual, with regular and predictable routes, driving patterns and timings. That means we would be able to predict and plan for how we could use any spare available capacity they can offer to support the grid.” As London is rolling out an ambitious plan to convert the transport systems to a renewable basis, this technology may provide a valuable basis for further expansion and resource planning.
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