Can EVs provide power to the electrical grid during blackouts?

With more and more vehicles being powered by electricity rather than natural gas, more and more people have started to wonder if those vehicles could power more than just themselves. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just start up the car in your garage in order to keep essentials running during a power outage?

You’re darn right it would be. That’s why GM and PG&E, one of Northern California’s biggest utility companies, are teaming up to explore the possibility. In a pilot program this summer, the companies will try out using a small fleet of GM’s EVs to put energy into PG&E’s grid. It will test “the use of bidirectional hardware coupled with software-defined communications protocols that will enable power to flow from a charged EV into a customer’s home, automatically coordinating between the EV, home and PG&E’s electric supply.”

If the pilot is successful, the two plan to expand the program to select groups of PG&E customers later in the year. “We see this expansion as being the catalyst for what could be the most transformative time for two industries, both utilities and the automotive industry,” said Aaron August, PG&E vice president of business development and customer engagement.

“Imagine a future in which there's an EV in every garage that functions as a backup power source whenever it's needed,” said Rick Spina, GM vice president of electric vehicle commercialization.