Shortly after announcing it was exploring a pilot project with General Motors to use electric vehicles (EVs) to power homes, California utility Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) will also be collaborating with Ford Motor Company on a similar project involving Ford’s new F-150 Lightning electric pickup.
The collaboration with Ford is very similar to the GM deal as it will involve bidirectional charging technology that can interact with the electric grid and provide electric power when the grid is overloaded or is knocked out due to a natural disaster.
According to PG&E one in five EVs are on the roads in California and the test will use the F-150 Lightning’s Intelligent Backup Power capabilities to provide backup power for PG&E consumers.
Intelligent Backup Power made its debut with the F-150 Lightning pickup and could provide up to 10 days of power for homes, depending on energy use. The first installations of Ford’s Intelligent Backup Power systems are expected to begin in the summer of this year, supported by solar power vendor Sunrun.
The pilot program
Early adopters of this program will explore how Ford F-150 Lightnings could interconnect to the electric grid when necessary.
Part of the pilot is to learn more about the overall customer experience to help with future collaborations of this emerging technology.
“Today, we are seeing breakthrough opportunities at the intersection of the energy and transportation industries,” said Patti Poppe, CEO of PG&E. “As more electric vehicles and new charging technology become available, it is critical that we better understand how EVs can interact with the electric grid and how we can best support our customers. Through collaborations with automakers like Ford, we are innovating together for a cleaner, safer and brighter future for all.”
Initial deployment of the project will involve a small number of customers’ homes with PG&E and Ford planning to explore additional use cases and potential for bidirectional charging technology in the future.
EV adoption in California
PG&E said that EV adoption can play a critical role in reducing emissions in transportation. In California, vehicles are the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the state, contributing about 40%. Passenger vehicles alone account for nearly 29% of the state’s total emissions.
By 2035, 100% of California sales of new passenger cars and trucks will have zero tailpipe emissions.
PG&E estimated that 93% of its customers’ electricity in 2021 came from greenhouse-gas-free resources and fueling these EVs will come from similar power sources.
The utility company hopes that through its EV charging infrastructure it will help reduce one of the biggest barriers to EV adoption in the lack of available places to charge. Increasing access to EV chargers will help encourage consumers to adopt EVs and is seen as a critical component to the EV transition that is currently happening in the automotive industry.
Nearly all automotive OEMs have pledged to sell primarily EVs as of 2040 due to increased regulations on emissions and the fight to curb climate change. It is seen as the largest transition in the industry's history.
