The Mobility House Drive Vehicle-to-Grid Technology Forward

Industry News – August 9, 2024

At the recent Power2Drive Europe Conference, Dr. Christopher Hecht from The Mobility House and RWTH Aachen University presented developments in vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology.

The presentation focused on how V2G services can be implemented and brought to market - an area in which The Mobility House has been active for over 15 years.

Cooperation with Renault

Dr. Hecht's presentation focused on the cooperation with Renault, which led to the development of the Renault R5. This vehicle is the first bidirectional model with a commercial offering. "We are very close to the first delivery of these vehicles," said Hecht, explaining that The Mobility House is acting as enabler, market access manager and aggregator in this project.

Three essential components for V2G

Hecht explained that three key components are necessary for the successful implementation of V2G services:

  • Energy tariff: this enables the added value of electric vehicle flexibility through dynamic price incentives.
  • Smart Charging App: This app allows users to enter charging preferences such as departure time, desired charge level and the use of photovoltaic power.
  • Aggregator and trader: The Mobility House acts as an aggregator that bundles the flexibility of many vehicles and trades on the energy markets.

Technical implementation and flexibility management

The technical implementation requires reliable communication between the vehicles or charging stations and the backend of The Mobility House. The flexibility of many vehicles is aggregated into a virtual power plant and traded on various energy markets. Hecht emphasized the importance of dynamic tariffs and multi-market optimization to maximize the market value of flexibility.

A model to describe the flexibility of a vehicle is based on arrival time, state of charging and departure time. By aggregating the flexibility of many vehicles, charging and discharging times can be optimized, which maximizes the market value and improves grid stability.

Market strategies and future prospects

The Mobility House focuses mainly on wholesale energy trading and the provision of grid services. Balancing services are also important, but offer less economic potential in comparison. "The main revenue is generated in the wholesale market," explained Hecht, adding that optimization on the intraday market, which trades energy shortly before physical delivery, is particularly relevant.

You can find the full presentation by Christopher Hecht in the media library of The smarter E Digital .

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