Bloomberg Business Tech ran a story on April 9, 2018 that was too good not to share. It tells of the tale of an Irishman named Damien Maguire who grew tired of grid blackouts plunging the countryside into darkness. Now Damien is an electrical engineer, and a proverbial tinkerer who makes hand-built vehicles. Thus, he knew just how to energize his home from his electric car battery. Bloomberg wonders, could cities power that way too?
Could Cities Power off Vehicle-to-Grid Networks
The biggest challenge would be convincing owners of electric cars not to regard their vehicles as ‘private bubbles’ and their own exclusive domains. They would have to charge them according to public interests, and share some of the energy during peak periods for this to work.
It is technically possible that cities could power that way in the future. However, this would require electric car owners to recharge their cars during the quiet hours of the early morning. Moreover, they would have to plug them into the city grid after the morning rush hour peak. We are not sure how this would work. But we know there would have to be tight control to balance demand and supply over time.
By 2040, Half of All Cars Could Fit the Bill for This
We have reached the point where a modern electric vehicle can power the average U.S. home for several days. Thus, it makes sense to use these storage-systems-on-wheels for the public good, especially when they are 90% idle.
Nissan Motor Co has had a hard time convincing its Japanese electric car customers to follow in Damien Maguire’s footsteps. However, the manufacturer remains upbeat despite a scant 8.5% of them picking up on the idea. From where we sit, and create this post it seems obvious we need every volt of available grid storage to bring meaningful green power on line. If nearby cities could power from electric car storage, then we believe we would sign up for it right away.
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Preview Image:Nissan Leaf and Land Glider
