Auckland launches trial using electric cars as home batteries to cut power costs

The Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority announced a pilot in Auckland that will install as many as 100 bidirectional chargers in homes and businesses to test whether electric vehicles can act as large-scale batteries. The technology, known as vehicle-to-household or vehicle-to-grid, allows an EV to charge during low-price periods and then feed electricity back to the premises or the national grid when demand and prices peak, offering possible savings on electricity bills and backup power during storms.

The program expands on an existing trial in Queenstown and will be managed by Counties Energy, the operator of the OpenLoop charging service, which will handle participant recruitment and charger deployment. While Australia has already run extensive trials and permits two-way charging in some states, New Zealand currently lacks widely available grid-discharging chargers. EECA’s policy and regulation manager Murray Bell said the data collected will help shape future regulations and support the national goal of meeting a projected 35-82 % rise in electricity demand by 2050 as the economy decarbonises. The trial may also include a limited number of heavy-vehicle chargers, and results will be released on a regular basis.