When is V2G Really Coming to Australia? An Energy Insiders Take

In order for V2G to become a reality for Australian customers, several pieces of the 'system' need to be in place. Below is a breakdown of the key pieces of the V2G puzzle.

Following the recent announcement by RedEarth Energy Storage that they'll be bringing the first Australian made V2G charger in June, which other charger OEM brands are coming?

In addition to being certified to Australian standards (AS/NZS 4777.2), there will need to be interoperability between the charger and EVs - basically they need to speak the same language. While the consensus 'language' has yet to be formally agreed by the industry, it appears likely that the industry is heading towards ISO 15118-20.

Sigenergy

Click to expand

Image by - Sigenenergy

Sigenergy claim to have the first compliant bidirectional charger in Australia. The Sigen Energy EV DC 25 kW Bidirectional Charging Station when paired with the Sigen Energy controller/inverter is certified to AS/NZS 4777.2 and is also approved by the Clean Energy Council (CEC).

The Sigenergy system is different to the other bidirectional DC chargers on the list in that the charging system comprises a separate modules comprising: 1. DC EV charger and 2. an external inverter. Since the Sigen inverter is already certified, the system as a whole is certified and compliant.

The other bidirectional charging stations on the list have integrated inverters, therefore the whole charging station needs to be certified to AS/NZS 4777.2.

RedEarth Energy Storage

Click to expand

RedEarth Energy Storage and Ambibox have partnered to manufacture bi-directional V2G/V2H EV chargers in Australia. Three Phase versions are expected to be available by mid 2025. Single phase late 2025.

StarCharge

Click to expand

StarCharge are China's largest fully integrated charge point operator with over 3 million charging stations globally. They build everything from residential AC charge points, utility scale batteries to charging station management software. They have confirmed they are eyeing the Australian market for a release of it bidirectional V2G by first half of 2025. The Artemis Series is their latest AC charger.

Wallbox Quasar 2

Click to expand

Wallbox is one of the trailblazers of V2G in Australia with dozens of Quasar 1 V2G ChaDemo chargers installed and connected to Nissan Leaves across the country. The Quasar 2 has been making the rounds at energy conferences globally, including Everything Electric Sydney earlier this year. While Wallbox have yet to confirm release dates for Australia, expect them to eventually release the Quasar 2 in time.

PreviousNext

The final piece of the puzzle is confirmation from EV manufactuers that 1. their EVs are compatible with bidirectional chargers and 2. the impact on the vehicle's warranty

For an EV to successfully discharge energy to a bidirectional charger, they need to speak the same language. Manufacturers will need to program their vehicles to speak the same 'language' as the charger i.e. they are 'interoperable'. At this stage there is no universally agreed standard but it appears ISO 15118-20 will likely be the chosen one. It is important to note if the car doesn't speak the language as the charger, they won't be compatible.

While the work involved may appear straight forward, it still requires investment in engineering resources to homolgumate and program the vehicle for these requirements.

Usage of V2G will increase the cycle life of the battery and thus potentially impact its warranty. Manufacturers may need to revise their warranty to specfically cover use cases such V2G, given the potential for increased cycles. If you've ever worked in a large company, you know these things take time.

Extensive trials undertaken overseas, in particular by AmbiBox indicate that most EV models are 'capable' of V2G, however few brands have formally confirmed capability. Below are several EV brands that have publicly declared either intent or capability in their EV models.

Kia

Kia has publicly announced that several of its new models, including the EV5 and EV9 will be 'V2G ready'. This means that these models should be in a position to have their software updated to communicate with a compliant V2G charger.

Kia have yet to confirmed what implications this will have on the warranty of Kia's used in this way or whether V2G compatibility can be enabled for used models.

Kia appear to be one of the more motivated brands to V2G to their customer base.

Hyundai

Hyundai has been involved in several pilots globally testing V2G technology. While it has not publicly confirmed which of its models will be 'V2G ready', given its EVs are built on the same dedicated EV platform as most Kia EVs, there is a good chance, future models (and possibly past) will be V2G compatible.

Polestar

Polestar Australia MD, Scott Maynard recently confirmed that with respect to V2G "the Polestar 3 can support it very easily, so we’re all good to go with 3”. Furthermore, Polestar 3 is equipped with the necessary hardware, software to enable the technology won’t be released until later in 2025, expected around Q3.

Volkswagen

Although yet to formally hit the Australian market (deliveries expected early 2025), Volkswagen has confirmed that its ID models are V2G compatible: "ID. models with the 77 kWh battery (net) will be able to use the bidirectional charging function to store electricity at home. Volkswagen will also be able to activate the function for vehicles that have already been delivered as soon as they have also received the ID. Software 3.5 via an update."

Cupra

Built on the same MEB Platformas the Volkswagen ID models, Cupra has previously confirmed its models will be V2G compatible. Wallbox has done extensive testing and confirmed compatibility between its Quasar 2 bidirectional charger and the Cupra Born. It is one of the few instances where interoperability has been formally confirmed between the charger and the EV.

Tesla

As demonstrated by AmbiBox in multiple tests, Tesla models such as the Model 3 and Model Y are indeed capable of facilitating V2G. Tesla has not yet officially confirmed V2G capability in any of its Australian models, but a Tesla person we spoke to confirmed "its on their radar". It is likely V2G functionality, if it comes, will be similar to how it works in the Tesla Cybertruck which needs to be connected to a Powerwall or Tesla Gateway.

Click to expand

So is V2G coming by Christmas? It possible, but highly unlikely. Based on discussions we've had across key stakeholders in the industry, the best case scenario would be second half of 2025, but 2026 is more probable. The big unknown is EV manufacturers and their interoperability with bidirectional chargers. They need to be sufficiently motivated enough to implement the necessary changes. Furthermore, the use of an EV as a storage device will impact battery longevity, warranty etc. They’ll need to be sufficiently incentivised to wear this risk.

To summarise, we are waiting on:

• EV charger brands to release compliant products
• Industry agreement on interoperability i.e. speak the same language
• EV OEM confirmation models are V2G capable