Trial of vehicle-to-home technology shows potentials, but also highlights limiting factors.

DEMONSTRATION of how a popular Mitsubishi plug-in electric model can be used to power a house has been undertaken by the brands distributor, but it suggests while the vehicle is enabled most homes conceivably will not be.

A recent trial of V2H (vehicle-to-house), which allows electricity stored in an EV’s battery to be supplied into a building’s power network, has just been publicised by Mitsubishi Motors New Zealand.

It highlights the pluses, but also admits price of installation and specialist technology required are off-putting.

More significantly, the V2H – for vehicle to house - modules can only be connected to properties with three-phase power networks and can only be active during normal operation of the power grid. On top of this, there are regulatory issues to work through.

“The system can’t currently be used during a power outage because there is no fool proof way to ensure the power from the battery doesn’t flow back into the grid and place electrical workers in danger,” concedes technical services manager Lloyd Robinson.

“However, those types of hurdles will be overcome as uptake of the technology grows. The units themselves are also quite expensive – again, this will change as demand grows.”

The company says it had previously installed solar arrays on the roof of its Todd Park, Porirua, headquarters to charge the PHEV versions of Outlander and Eclipse Cross.

By installing a Wallbox Quasar V2H module, MMNZ can now use the solar-generated charge stored in the PHEV batteries to power the electric hoists in its parts operation and other electrical appliances in the business.

Robinson says the company has been keeping a close eye on the development of this cutting-edge technology for some time. Parent Mitsubishi Motors Corporation fast-tracking V2H in its cars has been encouraging.

“We have been aware that V2H modules would eventually land here and so have been able to ensure that all of our current generation Outlander and Eclipse Cross PHEVs, and our previous generation Outlander PHEVs, with CHAdeMO DC fast charge connections are V2H ready,” said Robinson.

While still in its infancy for NZ, the technology has the potential to provide stored energy resilience both to the national grid, by helping to buffer peak demand and in circumstances where properties may either lose connection to the grid or are permanently off the grid and have alternative sources of power generation (such as solar) to recharge the batteries.

Depending on the model, an Outlander PHEV battery has a total power capacity of up to 20kWh, which is about the daily power consumption of an average Kiwi household with two adults and two children.

“V2H is a really exciting development,” said Robinson. “And, while there are still some regulatory considerations to be worked through, I think we’ll start to see consumers looking at their cars in a whole new way.”

In the meantime, owners of late model Mitsubishi PHEVs who have properties or businesses with three-phase power and who charge their vehicles on night rates or via an alternative generation source, can now store that cheap power in their vehicle’s battery and pass it back into their premises’ when electricity prices are higher.

Wallbox distributor TransNet's e-mobility division manager, Glenn Inkster, has also commented.

“Mitsubishi Motors NZ is the pioneer of V2H in New Zealand,” he says. “Its PHEVs are amongst only a handful of NZ new models that currently have V2H capability.

“It is exciting times for this technology and we anticipate significant interest from PHEV owners. It really adds a new dimension to thinking about what EV to buy and the potential it has."