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Work On Largest Vehicle-To-Grid Operation Continues, Thanks To FCA

We have some exciting news coming out of Italy today, courtesy of Fiat Chrysler. They have officially started work on what will be the world’s largest vehicle-to-grid virtual power station and charging destination.

The site, which is in Mirafiori, Turin, is now in the first phases of its construction, despite the delay of lockdown. When completed it will supply up to 25 MW of regulatory capacity, and have charging stations for up to 700 electric vehicles, as well as 5 MW of solar panels.

Starting with 64 fast-chargers with 50 kW outputs, that support two-way power, this site will act as a laboratory exploring the many benefits of V2G solutions. This first stage is expected to be completed by July, and already there are 450 meters of excavated trenches which will house 10 kilometers worth of cables.

The system, which was designed by ENGIE Eps. will allow the cars, which are only in use for about 80 – 90% of the day, to act as storage for a virtual power plant, meant to offset peak demand and stabilize the frequency of the local grid. In doing this, they will save a ton of money for the system, and hopefully supplement their charging costs for the owners.

Estimates have it that by 2025, the total storage capacity of electric vehicles in Europe will be over 300 GWh, representing the largest distributed resource available to the European energy system. The market for V2G infrastructure, to date consisting almost exclusively of experimental projects, is now ready to get off the ground. – Carlalberto Guglielminotti, CEO of ENGIE Eps.

The 3,000 square-meter site should be completed in 2021, and will supply the stabilization benefits for up to 8,500 homes. It is the most ambitious project of its kind in Italy, and indiitive of the way the world is going as a whole.

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