A trial in Milton Keynes in the UK has shown how electricity networks can use smart technology to cope with charging more electric vehicles (EVs).

As increasing numbers of EVs are charged at home there will be more pressure on electricity networks, but a trial set up in Milton Keynes has found this stress can be alleviated by the use of charging technologies, and drivers using vehicle-to-grid (V2G) chargers may be able to reduce their charging costs in some cases to zero.

The findings are from the Domestic Energy Balancing EV Charging project, delivered by CrowdCharge on behalf of Milton Keynes Council, with Flexitricity as the energy demand response partner.

V2G chargers channel energy between the grid and the user’s home and vehicle, and back again, importing and exporting energy based on the real-time demands of the energy network. This means vehicles can be instructed to charge automatically when prices and carbon levels are low and can send power back to the grid to be sold when demand is high, while keeping enough for the needs of the driver.

Electric vehicle drivers in Milton Keynes trialled smart chargers and V2G chargers for a year, and the project also involved households that had solar PV panels installed. The trial showed the combination of different technologies had the potential to reduce the load on the electricity networks grid from charging EVs, when used with a smart charger and battery energy management platform.

The project also showed there was the potential for EV owners to save money on energy costs. By the end of the trial, charge cycles for some participants were at least 40% cheaper than unmanaged charging.

Also, participants with V2G chargers were sometimes able to reduce their charging costs to zero by charging at cheap times and then powering their homes at expensive times. In total, participants saved a combined £2242 during the trial, an average of £15 per user per month.

Participants were able to reduce regularly the carbon emissions of their charging by at least 25%. Those with V2G technology were sometimes able to charge with zero emissions during periods when they could use 100% renewable energy, and discharge at periods of high carbon intensity.

The traditional evening peak of demand therefore disappeared for these V2G users as they were running their homes from their cars during this peak time, therefore reducing the strain on the electricity networks grid.

The project also revealed learning points, including how technologies such as battery storage are difficult to integrate into home energy systems; more work is needed to overcome this.

The learning from this project should help the electricity industry better manage the peaks in electricity demand caused by charging increasing numbers of electric vehicles, and to understand how new technologies may impact the system.

The energy optimisation platform used in this trial was from CrowdCharge. A range of dynamic energy or flexibility services are due to be introduced in the UK energy market in the next two to three years.

CrowdCharge is offering the energy optimisation services that were trialled on the project, and has V2G users on its platform. EV drivers with V2G are achieving real-life savings on their energy bills, especially when combined with the generation of energy at home from solar panels.

“This is yet another Milton Keynes project that will help tackle climate change by informing the wider industry on ways that they can make owning and running an electric vehicle more appealing,” said councillor Jenny Wilson-Marklew, cabinet member for climate and sustainability. “It’s shown that a combination of different charging technologies working together can help balance the grid, which is becoming increasingly important as we head to a future where virtually all new cars sold will be electric. We look forward to implementing what we’ve learnt as part of our range of initiatives in Milton Keynes to future-proof our infrastructure for electric vehicles.”

Mike Potter, CEO of CrowdCharge, added: “We’ve shown that different technologies can help prevent local electricity networks being overloaded, but the key is the intelligent management of such technologies. Successfully integrating these systems can mean that electric vehicle drivers can benefit from greener energy as well as energy cost savings.”

Residents in the Milton Keynes Council area with any make or model of electric vehicle were able to apply to be part of the project. To take part in the V2G element of the trial, participants had to have a Nissan EV with a battery capacity of at least 30kWh or more.

The trial ran from 2020 to 2022 and included 12 participants – four with V2G chargers and eight with smart chargers – with over 3500 charge cycles taking place and over 35MWh of energy charged.

Participants used the CrowdCharge platform and dynamic energy services from Flexitricity to combine domestic smart electric vehicle charging and V2G to serve a range of flexibility services that can be used to reduce demand on electricity networks, and which are due to be introduced in the UK energy market in the next two to three years.

CrowdCharge, through its aggregated smart charging platform, used various profiles that ensure the protection of the distribution network operator’s low voltage network to address concerns about anticipated rapid EV uptake in the coming decade. CrowdCharge is a digital platform, accessed via an app, to manage multiple electric vehicle chargers to provide EV owners with cheaper and greener electricity, while at the same time reducing the impact from EV charging on the electricity grid.