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PG&E Launches EV Pilot Program

In this episode - PG&E Launches EV Pilot Program . . .

In a previous podcast episode (Bi-Directional Charging), we reported on V2H and V2G technology. Happy New Year, welcome to season four of On the Fly.

Dateline: Dec. 6, 2022 - Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) announced the launch of a pre-enrollment website for customers interested in joining the company’s upcoming Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) pilot program. The “Vehicle to Everything” pilot envisions a future in which automobiles not only draw their power from the electrical grid but can strategically add electricity back to the grid when demand is high — and generate some money for their owners.

It’s based on the concept of bidirectional energy flow using EV batteries; this isn’t new, but having a utility company as dominant as PG&E onboard could transform the idea into a reality.

The pilot has space for 1,000 residential customers and 200 commercial customers. PG&E isn’t releasing the numbers for how many people have signed up. Still, Paul Doherty, a communications architect at PG&E, expects the enrollment period to take several months, stretching into Q1 2023. More than 420,000 EVs—one in six in the country—are registered in PG&E’s service area of Northern and Central California, where customers are often early adopters of new clean energy technologies.

On the residential side, customers can receive financial incentives of up to $2,500 just for enrolling in the pilot. That money, says Doherty, goes towards installing a bidirectional charger at the customer’s residence. The installation cost varies according to the home’s specifications. Still, Doherty says it’s unlikely that $2,500 will cover the total cost for most users, though it may come close, with most installations ranging in the low thousands.

Once the bidirectional charger is installed, customers can use the electricity to power their homes during peak demand hours and begin selling electricity back to the grid during flex alerts.

Southern California residents may remember back in September of 2022 when the electric grid was pushed to its breaking point thanks to a historic heatwave. During such events–or any other disaster that strains the system–customers can plug their vehicle in, discharge the battery, and get paid.

Doherty states that users can expect to make between $10 and $50 per flex alert depending on how severe the event is and how much of their battery they’re willing to discharge. That might not seem like a considerable sum, but the pilot program is slated to last two years.

Let’s say California averages ten flex alerts annually; like in 2022, customers could make $1,000. That could offset the rest of the bidirectional charger installation or provide another income stream. Not to mention help stabilize our beleaguered grid.

However, there’s always a catch. PG&E has to test and validate any bi-directional charger before it can be added to the program. So far, the only approved hardware is Ford’s Charge Station Pro, meaning only the F-150 Lightning–can participate in the program. That should change soon as the utility company tests additional hardware from other brands. Doherty says they’re expecting to add the Nissan LEAF, Hyundai’s IONIQ 5, the KIA EV6, and others soon since it’s just a matter of testing and integrating those chargers into the program.

The commercial side of the pilot looks similar to the residential. Businesses receive cash incentives upfront to help offset the cost of installing bidirectional chargers and then get paid for their contribution to stabilizing the grid in times of stress. PG&E says electric school bus fleets represent attractive targets for this technology due to their large battery capacity, high peak power needs, and predictable schedule.

If California’s aggressive plan to transition all new car sales to electric by 2035 succeeds — this would require it to add nearly two million new EVs to state roads every year — that’s two million rolling, high-power batteries with the potential to power our homes, our jobs and the grid at large. Getting there will be a colossal undertaking, but PG&E’s pilot could be a sufficient test, provided they can figure out how to get more vehicles than the Ford Lightning into the program. I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before the other utility companies follow suit, so stay tuned.

I’m Patrick Ball; thanks for listening. See you in the next episode.

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