Sunrun, which offers a “clean energy as a subscription” service, is piloting a vehicle-to-home power plant using a small group of customer-owned bidirectional EVs, in partnership with Baltimore Gas and Electric. The project uses Ford F-150 Lightning electric trucks to deliver power to owners’ homes during peak demand times to support Maryland’s power grid.
The program includes three Sunrun customers in BGE’s service territory who own F-150 Lightnings paired with Ford’s Charge Station Pro and Home Integration System, which is sold exclusively through Sunrun.
Sunrun is networking and monitoring the enrolled F-150 Lightning trucks as they share stored energy during dispatch windows between the hours of 5 and 9 pm on weekdays. Customers will receive payments based on the amount of energy shared.
“This program is a significant proof of concept—no other market player has done this—and the goal is to expand these programs all around the country,” said Sunrun CEO Mary Powell. “This partnership lays the foundation for the power grid of the future, [which will enable] EV owners to contribute to grid resiliency and utility price stability for everyone. The summer heat can be especially stressful on our power grid, which is why proving the use of stored energy in EVs for capacity is so important.”
“We know that the power stored in EVs will be essential in our state’s effort to achieve its bold net-zero-emissions goals,” said Mark Case, VP of Regulatory Policy and Strategy at BGE. “Partnering with Sunrun will allow BGE to learn 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.
Source: Sunrun