This morning a new section was visible on the “Smart Tariffs” section of Octopus Energy’s web site. The new tariff is introduced by Constantine the friendly octopus as follows:
Octopus Power Pack: the UK’s first Vehicle-to-Grid tariff
Get free EV charging with our groundbreaking vehicle-to-grid (V2G) tariff
Add Octopus Power Pack to your regular tariff. We’ll set up your V2G charger to automatically manage your charging and discharging in the greenest way possible, so you can fill up for free.
A typical V2G driver could save £880 per year compared to Flexible Octopus, and £180 compared to Intelligent Octopus Go.
Power Pack represents the latest stage in our V2G rollout, following our wildly successful Powerloop V2G trial. It’s currently a beta tariff.
I cannot help but wonder if Constantine the intelligent octopus has been peeking at our decade old “artistic impression” of V2G technology in the domestic environment? See the banner above.
Sainsbury’s has today launched Smart Charge, a brand-new, dedicated EV charging business that will give drivers access to ultra-rapid EV charging points across its stores. This bold move illustrates the retailer’s commitment to the EV industry while providing an exciting new service for drivers.
In new research commissioned by Sainsbury’s, 80% of EV users admitted to avoiding long journeys because of not wanting to charge at public EV charging stations, describing the main frustrations as chargers being broken (40%), not enough charging bays (36%) and speed of service (33%). Designed to mitigate these frustrations, Smart Charge will initially feature over 750 cutting-edge ultra-rapid charging bays rolled out across more than 100 stores by the end of 2024, putting Sainsbury’s in the top five providers of ultra-rapid charging in the UK.
It seems as though Sainsbury’s have been doing a lot of market research. The release continues:
This wasn’t Plan A, but circumstances beyond our control resulted in Lisa, our ageing V2G R&D Nissan LEAF, making a return trip to Bristol Airport over the last couple of days. Here is a Twitter thread revealing what she discovered en route:
I phoned "support" to be be told that a visit by an engineer was required. Needless to say I asked when that might happen, not least because we'd be making the return journey tomorrow. They couldn't say.
The staff in the shop assured me this had been the case for weeks.
The world premiere of the ID. BUZZ concept car at the Detroit Motor Show in January 2017 triggered a sensational response around the globe. The positive feedback made only one decision possible: the concept car had to be transferred to full production. Five intensive years of development work followed. Now the time has come: the ID. Buzz – an electric motoring game-changer – is ready. Volkswagen is therefore activating the countdown for a double world premiere: on 9 March, the all-electric Bulli will be simultaneously taking off emission-free as the ID. Buzz (5-seater) and Buzz Cargo (van).
The ID. Buzz in Barcelona
The ID. Buzz looks like the iconic electric surf bus for the 2020s and beyond?
Not having had a chance to test drive the Buzz ourselves as yet, here for your delectation is Jonny Smith’s initial review on his Late Brake Show .
By all means rewind to the start and watch the entire video, but I’ve chosen to look first at the section captioned “Bi-directional charging”:
According to Markus Arand, head of brand and product communications at VW Commercial Vehicles:
When you have solar panels on your home, for example, this car will be able to have a thing called bi-directional charging. You can give the energy from the ID. Buzz back to your home. This is the combination we are talking about.
The other technical innovation of particular interest to yours truly, since I sit on the international standards committee that developed it, is that the ID. Buzz evidently supports the ISO 15118-20 communications protocol between the EV and the charging station. The resulting ability to “Plug & Charge” without messing around with plastic cards or dodgy apps is mentioned at 25:46 in Jonny’s video.
The Buzz “data sheet” doesn’t mention its vehicle-to-home capability, but does include the following information:
Important dates
• World premiere: 9 March 2022
• Start of production ID. Buzz Cargo: first half of 2022
• Start of production ID. Buzz: first half of 2022
• Market launch in Europe: autumn 2022
Here at V2G UK we await more technical details about the Buzz’s V2H capabilities with barely bated breath! A test drive to the seaside would also be much appreciated. And also a bit of vehicle-to-home interoperability testing in our suitably equipped car park:
Lisa our Nissan LEAF also cannot wait to meet Buzz. She gets very lonely at times:
