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The Independent
01-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Independent
EVs could power homes if UK suffers major power cut
Electric vehicles (EVs) could power homes if the UK suffers power outages similar to those in Spain and Portugal, a think tank has said. The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) said 60% of an EV's battery is capable of providing nearly six days of electricity for a typical UK home. EVs with V2G (vehicle to grid) or V2H (vehicle to home) functionality are able to send energy back from their battery to the grid or home via a bi-directional charger. The technology enables EVs to be used to generate money by charging when electricity is cheap – such as overnight – and selling it back at peak times. The ECIU estimated that EV owners could make £630 a year in this way. Several EV users in Spain posted on social media that they were using this technology to power their homes during widespread power outages that began on Monday. One claimed they were 'the only one with electricity in my neighbourhood thanks to my electric car'. ECIU head of transport Colin Walker said: 'As well as reducing emissions and saving their owners hundreds of pounds in running costs, EVs are also capable of adding resilience to their owners' homes. 'More and more EVs are arriving on the market that are capable of returning power to the home. 'In an unprecedented blackout like the one we just saw in Spain, these EVs will allow people to keep their lights on, their fridges cold and their wireless routers running for days. 'Owners of V2G-capable EVs are also able to charge their cars when electricity is cheap and sell it back to the grid when demand is higher, earning them hundreds of pounds a year.' Automotive industry veteran Andy Palmer recalled how Japan suffered major power cuts following a tsunami in 2011, while he was at manufacturer Nissan. He said: 'My team and I commissioned Leaf-to-Home where the car could power the house, and the very first unit was installed in my house in Tokyo in 2012. 'This technology isn't new, but it does work and we do need it. 'EVs can, and will, deliver the balance that the grid needs as we transition to a renewable future.' This week's blackouts caused major disruption in Spain and Portugal, with businesses unable to accept card payments, metro systems closed and traffic lights out of action.
Western Telegraph
01-05-2025
- Automotive
- Western Telegraph
EVs could power homes if UK suffers major power cut
The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) said 60% of an EV's battery is capable of providing nearly six days of electricity for a typical UK home. EVs with V2G (vehicle to grid) or V2H (vehicle to home) functionality are able to send energy back from their battery to the grid or home via a bi-directional charger. In an unprecedented blackout like the one we just saw in Spain, these EVs will allow people to keep their lights on, their fridges cold and their wireless routers running for days Colin Walker, Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit The technology enables EVs to be used to generate money by charging when electricity is cheap – such as overnight – and selling it back at peak times. The ECIU estimated that EV owners could make £630 a year in this way. Several EV users in Spain posted on social media that they were using this technology to power their homes during widespread power outages that began on Monday. One claimed they were 'the only one with electricity in my neighbourhood thanks to my electric car'. ECIU head of transport Colin Walker said: 'As well as reducing emissions and saving their owners hundreds of pounds in running costs, EVs are also capable of adding resilience to their owners' homes. 'More and more EVs are arriving on the market that are capable of returning power to the home. 'In an unprecedented blackout like the one we just saw in Spain, these EVs will allow people to keep their lights on, their fridges cold and their wireless routers running for days. EVs can, and will, deliver the balance that the grid needs as we transition to a renewable future Automotive industry veteran Andy Palmer 'Owners of V2G-capable EVs are also able to charge their cars when electricity is cheap and sell it back to the grid when demand is higher, earning them hundreds of pounds a year.' Automotive industry veteran Andy Palmer recalled how Japan suffered major power cuts following a tsunami in 2011, while he was at manufacturer Nissan. He said: 'My team and I commissioned Leaf-to-Home where the car could power the house, and the very first unit was installed in my house in Tokyo in 2012. 'This technology isn't new, but it does work and we do need it. 'EVs can, and will, deliver the balance that the grid needs as we transition to a renewable future.' This week's blackouts caused major disruption in Spain and Portugal, with businesses unable to accept card payments, metro systems closed and traffic lights out of action.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
EVs could power homes if UK suffers major power cut
Electric vehicles (EVs) could power homes if the UK suffers power outages similar to those in Spain and Portugal, a think tank has said. The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) said 60% of an EV's battery is capable of providing nearly six days of electricity for a typical UK home. EVs with V2G (vehicle to grid) or V2H (vehicle to home) functionality are able to send energy back from their battery to the grid or home via a bi-directional charger. The technology enables EVs to be used to generate money by charging when electricity is cheap – such as overnight – and selling it back at peak times. The ECIU estimated that EV owners could make £630 a year in this way. Several EV users in Spain posted on social media that they were using this technology to power their homes during widespread power outages that began on Monday. One claimed they were 'the only one with electricity in my neighbourhood thanks to my electric car'. ECIU head of transport Colin Walker said: 'As well as reducing emissions and saving their owners hundreds of pounds in running costs, EVs are also capable of adding resilience to their owners' homes. 'More and more EVs are arriving on the market that are capable of returning power to the home. 'In an unprecedented blackout like the one we just saw in Spain, these EVs will allow people to keep their lights on, their fridges cold and their wireless routers running for days. 'Owners of V2G-capable EVs are also able to charge their cars when electricity is cheap and sell it back to the grid when demand is higher, earning them hundreds of pounds a year.' Automotive industry veteran Andy Palmer recalled how Japan suffered major power cuts following a tsunami in 2011, while he was at manufacturer Nissan. He said: 'My team and I commissioned Leaf-to-Home where the car could power the house, and the very first unit was installed in my house in Tokyo in 2012. 'This technology isn't new, but it does work and we do need it. 'EVs can, and will, deliver the balance that the grid needs as we transition to a renewable future.' This week's blackouts caused major disruption in Spain and Portugal, with businesses unable to accept card payments, metro systems closed and traffic lights out of action.
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The Independent
22-04-2025
- Automotive
- The Independent
Families could save £1,000 a year by switching to electric vehicles – but there are two big issues to consider
New analysis has shown that families might be set to miss out on saving significant amounts every year when it comes to choosing a new car, partly as a result of the government backtracking on changes to future sales balances between petrol and electric vehicles. British families could miss out on almost £1,000 a year if they opt for a hybrid car instead of an electric one, according to new analysis. The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) think tank compared the potential running costs between buying EVs and their petrol equivalents, which shows that buyers could save £850 a year with the former. However, that saving drops to just £13 a year if a hybrid electric vehicle is purchased. The fear now is that changes to the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate - which saw the government relax rules around the sales of cars with petrol and diesel engines - may encourage manufacturers to produce HEVs instead as they are seen as more profitable, leading to fewer choices to purchase second-hand EVs for families. Further analysis of the UK's best-selling plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) suggested a saving of £117 a year over petrol equivalents, but the ECIU further revealed an equivalent electric vehicle – rather than a PHEV – could yield a £1,050 a year saving. Colin Walker, head of transport at the ECIU, said: 'EVs are already at price parity with petrol cars on the secondhand market and are quickly snapped up when they become available, but these changes will mean fewer secondhand EVs available to the 80 per cent of us who buy our cars on the used market. 'Given how popular EVs are with their drivers, this looks like bad policy for families, driving up the nation's driving bill. It also means billions of pounds of investment into the charging network is now in jeopardy, costing jobs and holding back economic growth.' As well as the possible reduction in the number of vehicles available to choose from on the secondhand market, EV owners have been hit this year with another increased cost. For the first time in the UK, from this April EV owners have to pay car tax. The rates differ depending on how new the car is, but it remains another consideration for prospective electric car buyers that they would previously have saved on, relative to buying a petrol car. 'While [changes to the ZEV mandate were] pitched as a response to the economic chaos of Trump's tariffs, these changes could actually make things worse, costing UK consumers,' Mr Walker added. 'With less onus on manufacturers to compete to sell EVs in the UK, and the government encouraging them to sell more hybrids instead, potentially millions of families could be left to foot a bill of up to £1,050 a year for more expensive driving. 'We've seen what this kind of policy flip-flopping has done before under the previous government when changes criticised by the then opposition confused consumers leading to lower sales even though EVs remain much cheaper to run.'
The Guardian
22-04-2025
- Automotive
- The Guardian
Motorists ‘could save £850 a year by choosing an electric car over a hybrid'
British households could miss out on savings of more than £800 a year on running costs if they choose a hybrid car over an electric one, amid concerns that recent government rule changes open the door for manufacturers to sell more polluting cars. Owners of hybrid cars only save an average of £13 a year compared with drivers of petrol vehicles, but could save as much as £850 annually if they buy electric rather than petrol, according to analysis by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), a thinktank. This month, Keir Starmer's government changed electric vehicle rules to allow more sales of cars with petrol and diesel engines until 2035, after extensive lobbying by the automotive industry. Allowing sales of hybrids, which combine a small battery with an internal combustion engine, was a key part of the changes to rules, known as the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate, that force carmakers to sell an increased proportion of electric cars each year. The government allowed sales of models such as the Toyota Prius and those using Nissan's 'e-Power' until 2035. Those cars use the engine to charge the battery, meaning they are not capable of zero-emission driving. Carmakers argued successfully that hybrids cut carbon emissions compared with petrol cars. However, their main motivation for continuing with hybrid sales is that they are more profitable than electric cars. Petrol carmakers said that they needed those profits to invest in future electric production, with a global economic slowdown amid the US president Donald Trump's trade war making it even harder to switch. Colin Walker, head of transport at the ECIU, said: 'While pitched as a response to the economic chaos of Trump's tariffs, these changes could actually make things worse, costing UK consumers. With less onus on manufacturers to compete to sell EVs in the UK, and the government encouraging them to sell more hybrids instead, potentially millions of families could be left to foot [the bill] for more expensive driving. 'Given how popular EVs are with their drivers, this looks like bad policy for families, driving up the nation's driving bill.' Hybrids can still be attractive financially for households, partly because they cost less upfront than electric cars. Hybrids can also appeal to car buyers who do not have easy access to charging, a problem in many urban areas, particularly outside London. However, electric cars make significant savings on fuel and maintenance, meaning the total cost of ownership is lower for most people using electric cars. The switch to electric cars is unavoidable if the UK is to hit its climate goals. Walker criticised 'policy flip-flopping' on electric car rules, which he said would ultimately make the transition more expensive. The nascent and fast-growing EV charging industry has also warned of lost investment because of the changes. The ZEV mandate changes will also give incentives to carmakers to sell more plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), hybrids whose battery can be charged from a plug. PHEVs are theoretically significantly greener than hybrids because they are capable of running with zero emissions – although there are concerns over whether PHEV owners plug in enough to realise the green savings. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion The ECIU's analysis found that the UK's bestselling PHEVs offer their owners savings of £117 a year in running costs over their petrol equivalents. However, running cost savings for the equivalent electric models jump to more than £1,050 a year. Quentin Willson, the founder of FairCharge, which campaigns for policies that support electric vehicles, said: 'Government extending the sales of new hybrids to 2035 is a grave misstep. Well-intentioned drivers are being misled by the alleged benefits of hybrids, which are neither significantly more economical than combustion cars nor better for urban air quality. 'The softening of the ZEV mandate allows carmakers to build combustion engines for longer and ease back on EV targets. The UK is currently Europe's most successful market for EVs, but succumbing to pressure from carmakers to dilute the mandate threatens that success and will allow Chinese carmakers to dominate. This is shortsighted, disappointing and ill-judged government policy.'
