Nissan sheds light on ‘world first’ vehicle-to-grid project

Nissan has revealed that its vehicle-to-grid (V2G) demonstrator project will target 1000 installations over the next three years, as the car giant aims to help make the UK grid "more sustainable and more stable".


The Japanese firm is a member of the e4Future project, which was last week awarded £9.8m as part of the Government’s programme to develop the business proposition and core technology around V2G.

The technology is seen by many as a significant step in the transition to low-carbon transportation and a smart energy system, due to its ability to provide demand-response services to the power grid.

Nissan is part of a consortium that will evaluate the technical characters of V2G charging for both EVs and the electricity networks. Other members include V2G aggregator provider Nuvve, National Grid and distribution network operators (DNOs) UK Power Networks and Northern Powergrid.

The research and analysis activities will be backed by Newcastle University and Imperial College London.

“Today, our EVs are not just transforming the way we drive, but also the way we live,” said Nissan Europe managing director of Nissan Energy Fransisco Carranza.

“We now look at our cars as so much more than products which simply move people from A to B – they are an intrinsic part of the way we consume, share, and generate energy. This will have a fundamental impact on the shift from fossil fuels to renewables.”

‘World first’

Nissan has already partnered with Italian energy company Enel to develop 100 V2G energy storage units in London. It has also fitted its R&D facilities in Cranfield with its V2G concept, which could reportedly generate 180MW of capacity if all 18,000 Nissan EVs in the UK were connected to the network.

National Grid’s head of business development Claire Spedding spoke of the “great opportunity” for V2G technology to support the growth of EVs and manage the anticipated rise in electricity demands.

“Energy stored in EVs can be fed back into the electricity network to help manage the network at times of high demand and be an additional tool for operating Great Britain’s electricity system.

“It’s an exciting project and we’re delighted we’ve been successful in gaining funding to explore the opportunities of V2G technology.”

Spedding’s thoughts were echoed by Myriam Neaimeh, Newcastle University’s project lead on V2G, who described the Government’s announcement as a “real game changer as we move towards decarbonising the grid”.

Neaimeh said: “This will be the first, large scale demonstration of vehicle to grid technology anywhere in the world and crucially, this project brings together all the key players for the first time – a giant of the automotive industry with energy providers, infrastructure experts and academics – so we can work together to really make this happen.”

Earlier this month, Nissan launched an “all-in-one” energy solution for UK homes, combining solar panels with an energy storage system. The Nissan Energy Solar system will allow homeowners to collect and store excess energy from their solar panels and use it during the night.

George Ogleby

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