Sunrun is now operating a vehicle-to-home power plant using a small group of customer-owned bidirectional electric vehicles in Maryland.
The program includes three Sunrun customers in Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE) service territory who own an F-150 Lightning paired with Ford Charge Station Pro and Home Integration System, which is sold exclusively through Sunrun. This program is the first operational bidirectional electric vehicle power plant in the United States that uses a cohort of customer vehicles.
“This exciting partnership lays the foundation for the power grid of the future where electric vehicle owners can contribute to grid resiliency and utility price stability for everyone,” said Sunrun CEO Mary Powell. “The summer heat can be especially stressful on our power grid, which is why proving the use of stored energy in electric vehicles for capacity is so important.”
BGE was awarded grant funding from the Dept. of Energy to create an electric vehicle virtual power plant. BGE partnered with Sunrun to develop and administer the program, which is designed to assist BGE’s system during times of peak energy consumption. By discharging F-150 Lightnings’ onboard batteries directly to participants’ homes, the program showcases how electric vehicles can function like stationary batteries to reduce demand on the grid and create a more resilient and reliable energy system for all BGE customers in Maryland.
Sunrun is networking and monitoring the enrolled F-150 Lightning trucks as they share stored energy during dispatch windows from June 1 to September 30, 2024, between the hours of 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays. All funding will flow to enrolled customers, who will receive a payment based on the amount of energy shared — estimated to be $800 over the four months of the program.
“We know that the power stored in electric vehicles will be essential in our state’s effort to achieve its bold net-zero emissions goals,” said Mark Case, Vice President of Regulatory Policy and Strategy at BGE. “Partnering with Sunrun will allow BGE to unlock and learn the potential of how vehicle-to-grid programs will support increasing grid efficiency and reliability with distributed energy resources, while providing a valuable new benefit to customers.”
In addition to demonstrating vehicle-to-home capabilities, the program’s goals also include learning the behaviors and preferences of electric vehicle owners. Based on insights gained, Sunrun and BGE plan to explore expanding the program, offering incentives for existing F-150 Lightning owners to adopt bidirectional charging and developing direct, vehicle-to-grid capabilities so that energy from electric vehicles can be shared throughout a community.
“BGE and Ford have been amazing partners. This program combines each organization’s core strengths for the benefit of all ratepayers — that’s the beauty of this joint collaboration,” said Chris Rauscher, Sunrun’s Head of Grid Services. “Virtual power plants with bidirectional electric vehicles will play a key role in the clean energy transition. We look forward to scaling these innovative programs with BGE and other utilities around the country.”
News item from Sunrun