A Chinese electric car maker is among brands testing technology that will allow British homeowners to draw power from vehicles parked in their driveway.
The system being trialled by BYD lets drivers plug in their car at home and then use it as a power bank via a two-way charger.
This means that when electricity prices are high, they can either use the car’s battery to power their home or sell power back to the grid for a profit.
At scale, the National Grid has previously suggested it could also help to reduce pressure on the country’s power infrastructure if coordinated properly.
BYD is testing the system at a new green technology “superhub” in Manchester established by Kraken, the software division of energy giant Octopus, which has also partnered with other major car brands such as Ford and Tesla.
The move underlines BYD’s plans to grow its sales in the UK, where it is hoping to become a leading player in the electric car market.
Devrim Celal, chief executive of Kraken, said only a very small number of electric cars are currently capable of so-called vehicle-to-grid power transfers, although more manufacturers are now moving to adopt the technology.
He added: “We have got about one million electric vehicles in the UK today, by 2050 we are going to have about 30 million of them.
“So when these [car] companies look at the energy system, they see an opportunity around consumer flexibility – that ability to choose when to charge the car and the value that creates.
“Our conversations with them are about building that bridge between the automotive industry and the energy industry, where the automotive industry provides an ability to the energy industry to monitor the device in real time and to be able to schedule it, control it to charge at the right time.
“This is going to be quite a transformational technology once it’s in the market at scale.”
A typical electric car can store between 70 and 80 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity, while a home typically uses about 15 to 20kWh per day, Mr Celal said.
However, even if they decide to draw on their car’s battery, homeowners will be able to ensure the vehicle has enough power by setting how much charge they need at certain times.
For example, on the system, a homeowner could set a target of 80pc by 7am each morning.
The computer software would then draw power or feed it to the grid freely – but would only do so providing it can still meet the charging target that has been set.
Kraken’s software, which is currently used by Octopus, EDF, E.On and Good Energy to serve retail customers in the UK, would enable the link between the car and the household’s energy supplier.
Kraken said the Manchester superhub will also be used to trial a range of other pioneering green technologies, including home batteries and heat pumps.
The British company is also working with battery firms Enphase Energy, SolarEdge, GivEnergy and electric car charge point companies Indra Renewable Technologies, Hypervolt, Ohme and Myenergi, as well as heat pump makers Mitsubishi Electric and Daikin.
BYD, Ford and Tesla were approached for comment.
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