The €4 Billion Secret: How Electric Vehicles Are Becoming Grid Operators' Best Investment

A new report from EY and Eurelectric titled "Plugging into potential: unleashing the untapped flexibility of EVs" reveals how electric vehicles can help stabilize energy grids while saving money for both consumers and grid operators.

The Big Picture

By 2030, EVs could provide around 114 TWh of battery capacity to support the grid – enough to power 30 million homes annually. This represents about 4% of Europe's overall electricity demand. By 2040, if all EVs were equipped with bidirectional charging capabilities, they could store over 10% of Europe's power needs and feed it back when necessary.

Since cars are parked for about 23 hours each day, they're essentially "batteries on wheels" that could help balance the grid when not being driven. This untapped resource comes at a time when Europe's flexibility needs are expected to more than double within the next five years.

Money in Your Pocket

For EV owners, the savings are straightforward and significant:

• Small car owners using vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology could save up to €1,270 (19%) per year compared to traditional gas-powered cars

• SUV or larger vehicle owners could save up to €2,460 (26%) annually

• In countries like Germany, Sweden and Spain, total cost of ownership could be reduced by up to 14%

• France and the Netherlands might see savings of 8% and 9% respectively

These savings come from smart optimization systems like the one being developed by Sourceful Energy for home batteries. Their AI Energy Price Optimization automatically charges batteries when electricity prices are low and discharges them when prices are high, maximizing financial benefits while also considering new power demand-based grid tariffs. This same principle applies to electric vehicles with V2G capabilities, turning them into intelligent energy assets that can generate income even while parked in your driveway. The system handles the complexity of spot price differentials, grid tariff optimization, and consumption predictions, so you don't have to worry about manual scheduling or calculations.

Benefits for Everyone

Grid operators could save around €4 billion yearly across Europe by using EVs for flexibility services. According to Eurelectric's "Grids for Speed" study, this flexibility could help reduce the overall grid investment cost from an anticipated €67 billion to €55 billion annually between 2025 and 2050.

These savings help them avoid building expensive new infrastructure while keeping the grid stable as more renewable energy comes online. As Europe's electricity demand is set to increase four times faster in the next 25 years than in the previous 40 years, these flexibility solutions become increasingly valuable.

What Needs to Happen

For this potential to be realized, several key prerequisites must be addressed:

1. Simple, user-friendly systems that make it easy for everyday consumers to participate without requiring technical expertise

2. Clear and substantial financial benefits that make sense for all participants in the ecosystem

3. Tailored approaches that recognize different needs across user types, from individual homeowners to fleet operators

4. Grid upgrades and planning to handle two-way electricity flow and prepare infrastructure for bidirectional charging

5. Better data visibility and market integration to enable efficient sharing of information between vehicles, charging stations, and grid operators

6. Fair regulations that eliminate double taxation of energy storage (currently paying fees when both charging and discharging) and standardize participation methods

   
   

From Pilot Projects to Everyday Reality

While V2G technology shows tremendous promise, approximately 72% of projects are still in trial phases. The transition from pilot projects to commercial scale will require coordinated efforts from automakers, utilities, regulators, and consumers.

Looking Ahead

With Europe expected to have 55 million electric vehicles by 2030, growing to 116 million by 2035, the potential to use them as grid resources is enormous. As the report concludes, "If it's not smart charging, what else can take advantage of the abundance of EVs ready and available at comparatively low cost, already proven, flexible and scalable?"

The technology works – now we need the right policies and systems to make it accessible to everyone and transform our parked vehicles into valuable assets for the entire energy system.