Hydro-Québec has awarded GRIDbot Canada the contract for the development and supply of an advanced bidirectional charging station for an experimental project on vehicle-to-grid and vehicle-to-home power exchanges (V2G-V2H).
The goal of vehicle-to-grid (V2G) systems is to use the electricity stored in the batteries of plug-in vehicles as backup energy for electricity grids, such as the Hydro-Québec power system, during peak periods. Vehicle-to-home (V2H) systems, on the other hand, allow plug-in vehicle owners to use the energy stored in the battery as a temporary power source during outages, as they would a generator.
To carry out the project, Hydro-Québec’s research institute (IREQ) will assemble an electric test vehicle that will showcase Québec-designed technologies. TM4, a Hydro-Québec subsidiary, will supply a latest-generation TM4 MФTIVE electric powertrain system. B3CG Interconnect, a company from Saint-Eustache, along with its partners, the Centre National du Transport Avancé (national centre for advanced transportation) in Saint-Jérôme and Brioconcept, based in Laval, developed a bidirectional charger that will be integrated to the charging station built by GRIDbot. This company also develops a lithium iron phosphate battery, an advanced material patented by IREQ, and a complex management system.
The project will receive financial support from the Québec government as part of its 2011-2020 Action Plan for Electric Vehicles. This plan gave Hydro-Québec a mandate to define the implications of these innovative concepts and to carry out all required experiments.
