Nissan EV drivers invited to take part in Vehicle to Grid trial

Qualified applications for the Electric Nation Vehicle to Grid project have now been initially allocated project energy supplier propositions & progressed to the next stage. At this time, we are not currently accepting new applications for this project.

Thank you to everyone who applied to the Electric Nation Vehicle to Grid project – we are currently no longer accepting new applications for this project. You can register your interest in the case that this changes and applications are reopened. For potential participants who have already applied; you will be contacted in due course by the CrowdCharge projects team to inform you that your application has been successfully progressed.

COVID-19 UPDATE

Please note that all timescales for the project including charger installations are subject to confirmation based on government advice in relation to the coronavirus.
Read our full COVID-19 Policy Document

 

The project has recruited Electric Vehicle (EV) drivers…

  • Who drive a Nissan EV with a battery capacity of 30kWh or more
  • Live in the Midlands, South West or South Wales

… as they could be eligible to trial a domestic Vehicle to Grid (V2G) smart EV charger worth £5,500.

By plugging in at specified times participants could be rewarded, and the charger can be kept at the end of the trial for just £250.

Register your interest

Project applications are now closed.

Note: The installation of the charger will be free, assuming the standard install criteria are met:

  • 20m cable run from fuse board to charger location
  • Charger fixed to brick wall

If any groundworks are necessary these would be at extra cost to the participant

Recruitment process

  1. Complete the application form to ensure you are eligible to participate in the trial. Note: the project is now closed to new applications.
  2. If approved by CrowdCharge, the project installer will issue a V2G charger web survey for you to upload your property’s electrical layout information.
  3. The installer and Western Power Distribution will then assess your application.
  4. If approved, an installation day will be booked and installations will start from Autumn 2020, and completed in batches through ’til May 2021. All project timelines are subject to COVID-19 delays.
  5. When installation is complete, you’re a project participant!
  6. Official start of participant trial is June 2021.

About the Electric Nation Vehicle to Grid project

The Electric Nation Vehicle to Grid project has recruited 100 qualified applicants to trial state of the art domestic Vehicle to Grid (V2G) Smart Charging in order to help Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) and others to understand how V2G charging could work with their electricity networks. This will allow DNOs to see what V2G looks like as a service, so it can be made available to everyone. By helping to balance variations in the national energy production and consumption, you can save money by buying energy when it is cheaper and greener. The project is effectively imitating the future.

The aims of the project

  • To explore and report on the impact of V2G charging on the low voltage (LV) electricity network, utilising end-user trial charging data and analysis.
  • To demonstrate, via modelling, to what extent V2G can assist with management of LV network demand.
  • To examine how sophisticated dynamic bi-directional energy services based on vehicle battery storage, from a variety of energy suppliers, may impact the LV infrastructure.
  • Provide recommendations of policy and commercial frameworks on V2G services.

The benefits of the project

Benefits for trial participants

  • Trial participants will receive a V2G charger worth approximately £5,500 to use for the duration of the trial. The charger ownership can be transferred to you at the end of the project for a transfer fee of just £250.
  • Active participants will be expected to earn a minimum reward of up to the monetary value of £120, available over the one year trial period from June 2021 and ending in June 2022. Rewards will vary depending on the energy partner proposition participants are offered and accept.

Benefits for the industry

  • To help DNOs gain a better understanding of V2G by involving up to five different energy suppliers in the project.
  • To help energy suppliers to further their understanding of V2G energy services and how these impact the DNO.
  • To help to build a collaborative and cohesive market for all parties to operate.

Who are the project partners?

  • Western Power Distribution (WPD) is the project DNO
  • CrowdCharge is leading the project
  • DriveElectric is helping with recruitment of trial participants
  • EA Technology is modelling the network impact

Timescales

  • January 2020: Project start
  • June 2020: Recruitment commences
  • October 2020: Installations of chargers start
  • March 2021: 100 people to be recruited, energy suppliers allocated
  • May 2021: 100 project hardware installations complete
  • June 2021: Customer trial starts
  • June 2022: Customer trial ends
  • July 2022: Project ends

All project timelines are subject to delay following COVID-19 outbreak and government advice. The project COVID-19 policy can be viewed here.

Trial applicants’ eligibility

Trial applicants:

  • Must be resident in the Western Power Distribution (WPD) licence area (Midlands, South West and South Wales) Check the area here.
  • Must have a Nissan EV with a battery capacity of at least 30kWh or more
  • Need to have the vehicle until the end of the trial (March 2022 – however this has been revised to June 2022 for new applicants [as of Feb 2021] to fit in with the newly updated participant trial dates of June 2021 – June 2022)
  • Need to have off-street parking
  • Will use the CrowdCharge mobile app to manage charging
  • May need to switch to a new energy tariff if required by their project assigned energy supplier*
  • May need to have a new smart meter put in / updated as part of the project participation*

Applications that are eligible will need to be authorised to have the charger installed by both the project installer and WPD. This is to make sure that both the electrical system of the property and the local electricity network are suitable for a V2G charger. If both these approvals are received, applicants are able to become a project participant.

* To be confirmed in the individual energy partner Proposition Information documents which will be sent to selected applicants for acceptance. We will have a total of FOUR different energy suppliers with different trial propositions for the project. 

 

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Collaboration Partners

Electric Nation Vehicle to Grid is the customer-facing brand of Electric Nation PoweredUp, a Western Power Distribution (WPD) and Network Innovation Allowance funded project. WPD’s collaboration partner in the project is CrowdCharge.

CrowdCharge, Harleyford Marina, Henley Road, Marlow, Buckinghamshire SL7 2DX

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