Electric Nation installs 100 V2G chargers in the UK
Electric Nation installed the first 100 chargers as part of its latest Vehicle to Grid trial, to demonstrate a solution to potential electricity network capacity issues as the numbers of electric vehicles increases. So far, more than 450 EV drivers applied to join the trial.
The trial itself is being undertaken in partnership with CrowdCharge, Electric Nation is recruiting Nissan EV owners in areas of the Midlands, South West and South Wales to take part in the trial of V2G smart charging technology. The reason Nissan owners are being singled out, is because only Nissan’s EVs feature the required CHAdeMO charging technology.
A Wallbox Quasar is used for the trial, described as “the smallest and lightest bidirectional charger for home use” by the initiators. This V2G trial follows the first Electric Nation project from 2018 which was the world’s largest smart charging trial at the time. The trial captured data from more than two million hours of car charging, providing real life insight into charging habits.
This trial version also is the first V2G project to use multiple energy suppliers instead of just one. This allows for additional realism, as it mirrors “a future world in which many streets will have a number of EVs using V2G chargers operated by different energy suppliers”. The trial will run for a year, and allow for the plugging in at specified times and putting energy back into the grid, which is expected to earn “a minimum reward up to the monetary value of £120”, available over the one-year trial period from March 2021 to March 2022.
“Vehicle to grid charging is a great concept, but it hasn’t yet been trialled sufficiently on Britain’s electricity networks to enable it to be rolled out on a country-wide basis – hence the need for this project, says Mike Potter, CEO of CrowdCharge. “This trial will provide a smart solution for the management of electric vehicle charging and will study the real-world benefits of V2G.”
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