A few lucky Ford F-150 Lightning owners in Maryland will get to put their trucks to work for them through what’s being called the nation’s first vehicle-to-home power plant.
Sunrun, a provider of clean energy as a subscription service, said it’s partnering with Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE) to use a small group of customer-owned bidirectional electric vehicles to deliver power to homes when demand peaks in an effort to support Maryland’s power grid.
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It’s starting small. The company said the program will initially only include three Sunrun customers in BGE’s service territory who own an F-150 Lightning paired with the Ford Charge Station Pro and Home Integration System. Sunrun will be in charge of networking and monitoring the F-150 Lightning trucks to track how much energy they share from June 1 to September 30, 2024, between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays. All the money will go straight to the enrolled customers, who Sunrun estimates will receive about $800 for the four months. So maybe not enough to cover the truck payments but still a decent chunk of change.
Sunrun said the proof-of-concept program is the first in the U.S. to rely on customer-owned vehicles. CEO Mary Powell said the initiative could lay the foundation for a future where EVs help out with grid resiliency and utility price stability for everyone.
On top of showing off how the Lightning can power a home, the program should also provide some EV owner insights that will help Sunrun and BGE develop incentives designed to expand the program.
Last year, Ford’s Charge Station Pro and Home Integration System was approved for PG&E’s residential vehicle-to-everything (V2X) pilot program. According to Solar Power World, that pilot program is aiming to begin testing vehicle-to-grid technology later this year and it will offer incentives to customers that could be similar to what Sunrun and BGE eventually settle on. PG&E will offer up to 1,000 residential customers at least $2,500 for enrolling and they could earn up to another $2,175 in incentives for participating in the program.
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