As more cars plug in, EVs could actually make the grid more resilient by supplying electricity back to the network when it's needed most.
The California ISO, which operates the state's grid, has implemented daily Flex Alerts for more than a week, urging people to conserve electricity during peak use periods, between about 4 and 9 p.m. local time.There is plenty of spare capacity in the nation's electric grid to power hundreds of millions of EVs, multiple studies have found — as long as charging is properly managed.Even if they're plugged in all day, owners can schedule when they need their car to be fully charged.
Utilities also typically reward EV owners with discounts for participating in "demand response" programs that automatically interrupt charging briefly when demand is high, allowing the utilities to smooth out energy peaks and avoid blackouts.Vehicle-to-grid technology takes that relationship even further, enabling utilities to draw power out of an EV when it's most needed.
The city of Boulder, Colorado, for example, saved about $250 a month on electricity by using a Nissan Leaf to power a city-owned recreation building in a pilot project.Ford and GM are working with a number of utilities to explore how their vehicles — like the Ford F-150 Lightning pickup, which can power a house in a blackout — can supply electricity to make the grid more resilient.
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