BIG step forward, the Govt has actually developed a standard before it is required, usually the standards are developed after a catostrophic mess has happened.
This is the first time I can remeber, that the Govt has got the horse before the cart. Lol
It would have been nice if it had been introduced before they allowed E.V's into the country, but the technology is in its infancy, so credit where it's due.
New Australian Standards will allow families to power their homes using energy from their electric cars – or sell it to the grid.
The industry has been waiting on approval.
This will allow said devices to interface with distribution networks and allow a vehicle to feed energy to the grid or home. Approval for mainstream use of V2G tech is expected before the end of the year.
In theory, this new development allows some electric vehicle owners to bypass the need for a home battery system and power their home directly from the car’s battery. While most home battery systems currently are in the order of 10 - 15kWh, a car battery is generally over 40kWh, allowing a significant amount of energy to be utilised for home or grid power, where previously it could only be used for transport.
As an example, this could allow an electric vehicle owner to charge their vehicle using solar during the day, then sell excess energy not needed for driving at peak times during the night. Alternatively, the car could buy cheap energy from the grid and store it in its battery overnight, then sell it back to the grid at a higher rate during peak times in the morning or afternoon.
However, it is worth noting that in most cases, EV owners will need to invest in a home charger and smart metre which is capable of supporting V2G protocols and required software.
Not only will V2G and V2H capability help the government meet its emissions targets, but it will also improve grid stability and make better utilisation of energy resources in the grid, by providing a way for idle energy to be stored en masse and used in times of shortage.
However, few electric vehicles in Australia are currently capable of supporting vehicle-to-grid. For example, the popular Tesla Model 3 and Tesla Model Y, which make up the vast majority of electric vehicles which have sold in recent years, do not support the technology, and for many manufacturers, V2G has either not been made available, or isn’t available in Australian-delivered vehicles.
Hyundai, Kia, BMW, Ford, Honda, Toyota and Volkswagen have all announced their intention to invest in V2G support in their vehicles going forward, some of which already support the tech in markets overseas.
In the meantime, Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi Outlander and Eclipse Cross owners will be the first to take advantage of this new development, as all three vehicles were used as part of a trial of the technology in the South Australian energy grid in 2022 thanks to their Japanese-standard CHAdeMO connectors, which have supported V2G since they were released. At the time, the trial required a circa $10,000 vehicle-to-grid supporting inverter to allow energy from the car to be sold back into the grid.