Honda joins consortium on Vehicle-to-Grid demonstration project

The Japanese automobile manufacturer, Honda, has joined a consortium of firms, local bodies, and academic establishments to demonstrate Vehicle-to-Grid technology.

The consortium also features A.T. Kearney, the consulting company, the research group Cenex, the City Councils of Leeds and Nottingham, and the University of Nottingham and Warwick University.

The project aims to highlight the financial benefits for businesses and electric vehicle (EV) owners of battery storage and transferring excess energy to the grid.

Honda will provide its Power Manager system for the project, which enables energy stabilisation for the grid, in the event of too much or too little energy, by transferring it.

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“As well as providing a direct benefit to the grid, this initiative will demonstrate value for consumers, as the technology allows them to earn money from surplus energy put back into the grid,” stated Jørgen Pluym, Electrification and Home Energy Management Project Leader at Honda Motor Europe.

“The provision of both EV and energy management to the customer is an offer unique to Honda.”

Innovate UK, the UK government’s Technology Strategy Board, has invested £7mn (US$9.74mn) into the project.

“Retaining customers and broadening the range of services offered is central to a lot of energy retail strategies,” commented Tom Harper, Head of UK Utilities at A.T. Kearney and consortium lead.

“V2G is an exciting opportunity as the value on offer per vehicle is sizeable,” he added.