The Nissan Leaf is a fairly common electric car. It is also one of the few cars to have bi-directional charging in the United States. Nissan announces the possibility of connecting the vehicle to the electrical grid to sell the electricity from its battery at a high price.
Bi-directional charging is becoming increasingly common in electric cars, including the Kia EV6, MG5 and the Ford F-150 Lightning pickup. This technology allows the electric vehicle’s traction battery (lithium) to power a device, such as a computer, toaster or construction tool. But V2G (vehicle-to-grid) technology goes even further, as it feeds electricity directly back into the power grid.
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A BI-DIRECTIONAL CHARGING STATION
In practice, all that is required is to install a special charging station with V2G compatibility. The one proposed by Izivia has a power of 11 kW. This means that the battery can be charged and discharged at this power. Enough to power a house that runs exclusively on electric energy.
However, this functionality is a priori reserved for professionals. Indeed, in the United States, the V2G has just arrived again through the Nissan Leaf. As we learn in the Japanese manufacturer’s press release, the Nissan Leaf will allow us to send energy back to the electrical network on the other side of the Atlantic, thanks to a local partner who has developed a bidirectional charging station with a power of 14 kW.
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MAKE MONEY WITH YOUR ELECTRIC CAR? IT’S POSSIBLE!
In the United States, electricity network managers can send energy requests to individuals and professionals in case of high consumption, such as during heat waves or winter episodes. The aim is to encourage people to transmit energy from batteries and photovoltaic panels to the grid in exchange for an attractive payment.
Le média américain Electrek prend l’exemple de la canicule de cet été, où 1 kWh d’énergie a été acheté 3 dollars sur le marché de gros en temps réel. Contre moins de 20 cents en temps normal. De quoi envoyer l’équivalent de 186 dollars en vidant la batterie de 63 kWh, alors qu’il faut à peine 13 dollars pour la recharger en temps normal.
This means that it was possible to charge the battery of a Nissan Leaf before the event and then resell this energy during the peak of consumption for more than 10 times more expensive. In Europe and, for example, in France, EDF doesn’t buy back the energy so expensive. But if you charge on a free station and then sell the power to EDF, then it can work.
- READ MORE: “Now you can charge jetski through Ford F-150 Electric.”
- READ MORE :”The new Nissan X-Trail hybrid.”
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SUPPORTING AND DRIVING THE POWER GRID
But in reality, the objective of V2G is not to make money but rather to help the electrical network to get through peak periods. Moreover, in its various energy scenarios, RTE relies heavily on V2G to relieve the grid and thus store the energy produced by solar panels and wind turbines. This is called piloting electrical production.
And this is exactly what Tesla and Nio are doing with their virtual power plants. The idea is to use the batteries of photovoltaic panels and electric cars to feed the electrical network.