Publication of the white paper: The integration of V2G in Europe
A comparison of the implementation of bidirectional charging in France, the UK and Germany – Brief description
Electric vehicles that are capable of bidirectional charging can be used as decentralized storage, as most users only need a small proportion of the battery capacity for everyday driving. If the vehicle battery is used to feed electricity into the public grid, this is referred to as vehicle-to-grid (V2G). The potential that V2G offers for the energy system through various applications is huge. For users of bidirectionally chargeable electric vehicles, V2G also offers a potential new source of revenue.
The motivation and approach as to why and how bidirectionally chargeable electric vehicles are integrated into the energy system differ greatly from country to country. We have therefore taken a close look at the approaches and priorities for integrating V2G into the energy systems of the three largest economies in Europe – France, the UK and Germany. In addition to analyzing the status quo of V2G, our findings also include the motivations behind each country’s V2G integration strategy and possible further developments in this area.
Our findings from research and a large number of interviews with experts from France, the UK and Germany show that commercial offers of V2G are currently available in France and the UK. In Germany, implementation is limited to pilot projects. Overall, France and the UK offer more regulatory leeway for pilot projects than Germany. The UK in particular is focusing on the market integration of small-scale flexibility, which also includes V2G. In France, the grid operators have many alternative controllable generators or consumers that are preferably used for grid and system stability. France is not currently planning to incentivize V2G on the market, the implementation here was driven by car manufacturers. In Germany, there is currently no overarching strategy regarding the utilization of small-scale flexibility for the energy system.
In particular, the marketing of V2G on the spot market already offers added value in all three countries, both for users and from an economic perspective, as long as it does not place an additional burden on the electricity grids. To enable an economical and scalable implementation of V2G on-the-spot markets, the standardized technical connection should be promoted across countries. Both the respective regulatory authorities and the providers of technical solutions for the implementation of V2G should focus on corresponding framework conditions. Figure 1 summarizes the most important characteristics of these three countries about V2G.
A systematic description of the strategies and organization of access to flexibility would be helpful, as national markets, products and mechanisms for flexibility marketing can only be understood and compared if the energy industry context is taken into account. A comprehensive comparison of the energy systems of the largest European countries, based on which further options for action to harmonize the integration of V2G are to be derived, will be developed by FfE and published in mid-2025.
