by Electric vehicles can become a source of backup power for homes during power outages.
Individual electric car owners in Europe have already used V2H technology during recent accidents.
A research center calculated that 60% of an electric car’s charge will be enough to power a home for six days.
A recent massive blackout in Spain and Portugal left tens of millions of residents without electricity for almost a full day. However, for a small group of people, life continued at its usual pace. Paradoxically, it was the decision to buy an electric vehicle that allowed them to avoid the inconveniences.
Numerous electric car owners in Spain shared on social media how they used their vehicles’ batteries to power their homes. Models such as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 are equipped with V2H (vehicle-to-home) technology, which allows energy to be transferred from the battery to the home network.
Electric vehicles with V2H function can be compared to powerful portable batteries that charge smartphones, or to home energy storage systems for solar panels.
Although V2H technology has existed for many years, not all electric cars support this function. According to the British think tank ECIU, an average electric car with a 71 kWh battery can power a home for almost six days using only 60% of its charge.
“Besides reducing emissions and saving on operating costs, electric vehicles also enhance the energy resilience of households,” noted transport expert Colin Walker. “More and more models are appearing on the market with the ability to return energy to the home. During such large-scale blackouts as in Spain, they allow people to maintain lighting, keep refrigerators and the internet operational for several days.”
Power outages are not just an inconvenience
Blackouts are particularly problematic for those who work from home. They can lead to significant financial losses due to spoiled food in refrigerators. But most importantly, they pose a real danger to life. During a prolonged power outage, the 92-year-old father-in-law of the author suffered serious third-degree burns when his robe caught a candle in the kitchen.
Four months of treatment and numerous skin grafts – and the recovery process is still ongoing. It’s hard to imagine that all these consequences could have been avoided if there had been an electric car with V2H technology in the house. Provided, of course, that it was charged before the power outage…
