stabilize the network with electric cars

The great blackout that affected millions in the Iberian Peninsula made it clear that the electrical system needs more than patches. In Utrecht, the Netherlands have decided to try a solution that sounds for science fiction but is already real: electric cars that help stabilize the network.

Short. According to Reuters, Vehicle-To-Grid (V2G) technology allows electric cars not only to receive electricity, but also return it to the network at times of high demand. Thus, they become mobile storage units that help balance an electrical system increasingly fed by renewable energy, which are intermittent.

Double meaning. Promoted by companies such as We Drive Solar And with the support of Renault, the project transforms electric vehicles into mobile energy storage units. At night, in the so -called “Valley Hours”, cars absorb energy (ideally renewable). During the day, especially at times of high demand, that same energy returns to the network through bidirectional loaders.

All this has been possible thanks to the progress in more resistant batteries and intelligent loaders capable of managing this constant input and exit flow. As has pointed out Reuters, Utrecht has deployed 500 Renault R5 E-Tech vehicles compatible with V2G and at least 50 bidirectional recharge points throughout the city. The investment is around 100 million euros.

Why Utrecht? The choice is not accidental: 35% of its roofs They have solar panels, and it is the country with greater solar density Per capita of Europe. This creates an energy paradox: sometimes there is too much solar energy that is not used. The storage distributed in shared electric cars not only takes advantage of that surplus, but returns to the network when it is most missing.

In pilot phase. The rest of Europe countries are in a preliminary phase, the first major V2G ecosystem in operation, most projects in Europe remain pilots. For example, Volkswagen will launch one in Sweden this autumn with 200 ambibox chargers or, in the case of Spain, some electrroliners already operate with this system, although still limitedly.

A new form of storage. Utrecht’s case is more than a local bet: it is an example of how electric mobility can be actively integrated into the energy system. While they are built Great industrial batteriesthousands of connected electric cars can do the same job in a distributed, silent and effective way. What today is an ambitious test in the Netherlands, could be a common infrastructure tomorrow in many cities in the world.

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