EV owners keen to use their cars as a home battery: NRMA research

The survey of 1,300 NRMA Members – conducted in partnership with the UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures and iMOVE Cooperative Research Centre – also found among electric vehicle (EV) drivers, 54 per cent would like to install vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology in the near future.

Most EV chargers are unidirectional, and only allow power to go one-way into the vehicle battery. Bi-directional charging effectively allows an EV to be used as a home battery, storing the energy until it is needed in the home or selling back into the grid at peak times.

Bi-directional charging has long been viewed as a potential solution to both congestion and energy shortages in Australia’s power grid. The ARENA-funded National Roadmap for Bidirectional EV Charging, published on Wednesday, estimated the total value of V2G of our energy system could be worth almost $3 billion by 2050. Once readily available, it may also be an effective way for families to tackle rising energy costs and to provide backup power in the event of an outage.

The NRMA survey also found 85 per cent of people surveyed parked their cars at home at least three days a week during the crucial daylight solar generating hours and in the evening when demand on the electricity grid is at its highest. These households can both charge their car on free solar and sell back to the grid in peak hours to make a profit or significantly offset electricity bills.

The survey is part of a larger research project between NRMA, UTS and iMOVE, and accompanies the newly released “V2G Trailblazers” report that explores the barriers faced by Australia’s five early adopters of V2G.

These insights will help government and organisations like the NRMA to help EV drivers better navigate the process of setting up V2G, so that the technology can be scaled to its full potential. These five V2G trailblazers experienced significant early hurdles including a lack of compatible vehicles and bidirectional chargers, high costs to get set up, and complex regulatory and installation processes.

A lack of information and disparate services for establishing and optimising bi-directional charging, were also challenges. 

Some of these barriers are likely to resolve in the coming 12 months, with new V2G-compatible EVs and chargers entering the Australian market and regulatory changes helping to streamline the charger connection process.
 
Despite the hurdles, trailblazers reported significant upsides including earning up to $500 in two hours during a single event of wholesale energy prices spiking. While this was an exceptional earning, spikes like this (prices above $10/ KWh) are not uncommon, and occurred on 13 days last year.

NRMA Chief Strategy Officer, Vivian Miles, said Australia was extremely well-placed to benefit from V2G technology.

“There are lots of Australian roofs with solar panels, in cities getting plenty of sunlight, high rates of off-street parking and a growing number are EV owners. With Australia’s wholesale energy market so volatile, bi-directional charging could revolutionise how we view and use our cars,” Ms Miles said.

“We know the electricity grid is already under pressure during the busy evening peak and the demand is only set to grow. If V2G technology becomes accessible for more EV drivers, these vehicles will be able to add energy back into the grid right when it’s most needed.

“We are particularly excited about how V2G can potentially help our Members save money on their electricity bills.”

Dr Scott Dwyer from Institute of Sustainable Futures said this research was crucial to effectively scaling this technology in Australia. 

"The experiences of this first wave of users have allowed us to identify the main barriers and enablers of the V2G customer journey. This is important information that will help smooth out and speed up V2G adoption for more Australians,” Dr Dwyer said. 

“This has huge benefits – not only for householders – but for Australia’s energy transition. It will mean more renewables on the grid and more electric vehicles on the roads.”

Managing Director of iMOVE Australia Ian Christensen said iMOVE was pleased to support this important project building the knowhow necessary to successfully introduce and scale V2G technology in Australia, 

“It is early days for its adoption, and the leadership of organisations like NRMA is vital as we aim to support integration of renewables into the national grid and progress the decarbonisation of transport,” Mr Christensen said.

V2G Trailblazer Francis Clarke said he started looking into V2G because EV batteries were much bigger than home batteries.

“My solar panels produce over 50kWh on a sunny day in mid-winter and before I had V2G, most of this went to the grid at very low prices. I started looking into my options and got really interested in V2G. 

“My car has nearly five times more battery than a home battery. Now I charge the car from the solar during the day and send the power back to the grid in the evening when it’s needed to make a profit. 

“In May there was a big power spike where the wholesale price hit the unheard of level over $20/kWh. Amber Electric advised me by SMS and I was ready for this, I set both car and home battery to full discharge at 11kW.  In about two hours I earned $564!”