The technical, economic and commercial viability of the vehicle-to-grid concept

The idea that electric vehicles can be used to supply power to the grid for stabilisation and peak time supply is compelling, especially in regions where traditional forms of storage, back up or peaking supply are unavailable or expensive. A number of variants of the vehicle-to-grid theme have been proposed and prototypes have proven that the technological means to deliver many of these are available. This study reviews the most popular variants and investigates their viability using Western Australia, the smallest wholesale electricity market in the world, as an extreme test case. Geographical and electrical isolation prevents the trade of energy and ancillary services with neighbouring regions and the flat landscape prohibits hydroelectric storage. Hot summers and the widespread use of air-conditioning means that peak energy demand is a growing issue, and the ongoing addition to already underutilised generation and transmission capacity is unsustainable. The report concludes that most variants of vehicle-to-grid currently require too much additional infrastructure investment, carry significant risk and are currently too costly to implement in the light of alternative options. Charging electric vehicles can, however, be added to planned demand side management schemes without the need for additional capital investment.