UK's First V2G Tariff Expected to Save Driver's $1640 p.a.

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Image by - Octopus Energy

Octopus Energy, partially owned (23% stake) by Australia's Origin Energy, has ushered in a revolutionary era for electric vehicle (EV) owners in the UK with the launch of the nation's first vehicle-to-grid (V2G) tariff - 'Octopus Power Pack'. The energy plan offers free EV charging in exchange for allowing the energy provider to access the EV's battery and export to the grid.

Under this innovative tariff, EV owners are expected to save over £850 (approximately $A1640) annually on their charging costs by allowing their vehicle's batteries to export energy back to the grid during peak hours.

To be eligible, customers need to ensure their vehicles are connected to the grid for 170 hours each month (6 hours a day) and maintain their energy use within a monthly 333 kWh limit - which equates to 12,000 miles (c. 19,000km) per year of driving.

The Octopus smart tariff platform, Kraken, is powered by sophisticated data analytics and machine learning, and it’s already licensed to manage more than 50 million accounts globally.

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Image by - Mitsubishi

V2G in Australia

Presently, South Australia is the only Australian state to permit the connection of bidirectional chargers in its networks. The sole EV charger approved to be used in bidirectional mode is the Wallbox Quasar which needs to be connected to a CHAdeMO equipped EV such as the Nissan Leaf to activate the bidirectional charging feature. The Wallbox Quasar only supports the CHAdeMO plug which is featured in the Nissan Lead and Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.

▶️MORE: Watt is Bidirectional Charging, V2G, V2H, V2L?

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While no other states currently permit the use of bidirectional chargers in their network, several utilities are trialling the technology including Endeavour Energy, which is trialling one in its Western Sydney depot.

When will V2G/V2H be available?

The availability of V2G/V2H in Australia is likely to become available in Australia by 2025 or later. Its availability is predicated on three key outcomes:

• The approval for connection of bidirectional chargers from utilities e.g. like what is required for solar and battery systems.
• The availability of compatible CCS bidirectional chargers
• The availability of V2H/V2H compatible EVs.

The technical standard (AS4777.2) that will govern V2G is currently out for public comment, will implementation expected by the end of the year. With this standard finalised, energy utilities should be in a position to enable connection of 'approved' bidirectional chargers so long as they comply with this standard (or similar).

Several CCS bidirectional chargers are expected to hit the European market later this year, including the Wallbox Quasar 2. While supply might be tight, these could make their way to Australia some time in 2025.

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The good news is their are several EV models which currently support V2G/V2H such as the Cupra Born and Kia EV9. The upcoming Kia EV5 and Volskwagen EVs are also expected to come with this feature.

▶️MORE: Which Electric Cars Have Bidirectional Charging (V2L, V2G, V2H)?

Zecar's take

V2G technology has strong potential to help bring down electricity prices and improve grid resilience.

While 'free' charging of your EV appears to be a seemingly lucrative offer, many Australian households likely could extract substantially more value from a bidirectional charger. For example, a customer already charging from solar or using a cheap off-peak EV tariff will unlikely save anywhere near $1640 per year from free charging.

A more financially beneficial use case would be charging your EV from solar, using the charger's 'vehicle-to-home' function during peak hours and occasional using 'vehicle-to-grid' when the incentive from the grid is strong. For example, in the recent storms in Victoria which left 500,000 households without power, wholesale electricity prices spiked as high as $16,600/MWh.

For more information on EV technologies, charging guides, and comparisons, visit Zecar, your ultimate resource for electric vehicle insights.