Canada tests its first V2G for medium and heavy-duty EVs

BC Hydro has announced the first vehicle to grid (V2G) pilot project in Canada for medium and heavy-duty vehicles that will enable electricity to be pushed back to the grid from the battery of EVs.

The British Columbian electric services company’s bidirectional charging trial project will include medium-sized vehicles such as buses, and heavy-duty vehicles like transport trucks, marking the first of its kind in the province and the country.

According to BC Hydro in a release, compared to other backup generation, these medium-sized vehicles can be mobilised much faster than traditional sources like diesel generators and they are far cleaner.

“The average car is parked 95% of the time, and with the evolution of technology solutions like vehicle to grid, stationary vehicles hold the potential to become mobile batteries, powered by clean and affordable electricity,” said Chris O’Riley, president and CEO of BC Hydro, in a release.

“We are grateful to the Province for their support and funding, and we are proud to be working with our partners at Powertech and Coast to Coast Experiences to trial a technology that has the exciting potential to benefit communities right across BC.”

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As the EV market grows in Canada, V2G technology can offer several benefits including the ability to aid in emergency response by providing power to critical infrastructure such as schools, community centres, hospitals and police and fire departments, during major storms or natural disasters.

“This technology offers a host of new opportunities for British Columbians – everything from feeding electricity from your personal vehicle back to your home during a power outage to powering homes off-grid in times of need,” added Pierre Poulain, president and CEO of Powertech Labs.

BC Hydro has already successfully tested a 60KW charger connecting a Lion Electric school bus from Lynch Bus Lines. The typical bus battery holds 66KW of electricity, enough to power 24 single-family electrically-heated homes for almost two hours.

Today, BC has thousands of buses on its roads. They state that if 1,000 of these were converted to electric, the buses could power 24,000 homes for two hours.

Coast to Coast CEO Robby Safrata commented on the opportunity of the pilot to create new grid infrastructure solutions: “This technology will enable commercial electric fleet operators, when their vehicles are sitting idle, to create a high-power, mobile, bi-directional power plan that can support grid reliance and power homes and buildings.”

“We are excited to provide CleanBC funding to pilot projects like this that pave the way for more innovative, climate conscious solutions for powering BC,” added Josie Osborne, minister of Energy Mines and Low Carbon Innovation.

“The rapid rise in electric vehicle sales in recent years means we can expect to see up to 900,000 EVs in use in the next decade, and innovative vehicle to grid energy solutions could expand the use of EVs even further to provide more benefits to British Columbians.”