As the United States grappled with a relentless heat wave last week, power grids faced unprecedented strain. Contrary to concerns that electric vehicles (EVs) might overwhelm the system, they actually helped keep the lights on by feeding stored electricity back into the grid. This phenomenon is particularly evident in the growing fleet of electric school buses, which are playing an unexpected role in grid stabilization.
The World Resources Institute’s Electric School Bus Initiative reports that approximately 230 electric school buses, equipped with vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology, can collectively supply 8 megawatt-hours (MWh) of power back to the grid at any given time. This capacity is sufficient to power about 1,600 typical US homes for up to four hours, significantly reducing peak load demand for utilities.
California leads the charge in V2G school bus adoption
California is at the forefront of this technological advancement, with the Oakland Unified School District operating the state’s largest V2G project. Their fleet of 74 electric buses contributes an estimated 2.1 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of clean energy back into the grid annually. Steve Letendre, senior advisor to the Vehicle Grid Integration Council, emphasizes that “It’s very early days, (but) school buses will be a critically important backbone of V2G capacity.”
The multifaceted benefits of V2G technology
The current deployments of V2G school buses are just the beginning. Scaling this technology to half of the approximately 6,700 electric school buses already in service could provide over 100 MWh of flexible, off-peak energy during periods of peak demand. This resource flexibility not only shores up the existing grid but also has the potential to lower consumer electricity costs by reducing the utilities’ need to purchase expensive peak power on the wholesale energy market.
Beyond cost savings, the ability to tap into stored battery power in emergencies can be a literal lifesaver. Angie White-Banda, Transportation supervisor for Florida’s Glades County School District, highlights the buses’ potential during hurricanes: “If we have a hurricane, and God forbid we do, but if we do and there’s no power in the community, we can bring our buses to specified locations and the community can charge their phones. They can charge their devices. They can come in with, and sit down for a little while and cool off with cold AC.”
Expanding the V2G network
The San Francisco Unified School District is set to launch a new electric school bus project next month, which is expected to surpass the Oakland project. This initiative will feature a fleet of 104 buses returning about 3 GWh of energy annually during peak hours and is scheduled to double to more than 238 electric buses by 2028. This expansion underscores the growing recognition of the potential benefits of V2G technology in enhancing grid stability and resilience.
As the number of electric school buses continues to grow, so too does their potential to contribute to grid stability. With more than 6,700 electric school buses already in service and plans to more than double that number in the coming years, the impact of V2G technology on the nation’s power grid is poised to become increasingly significant. This innovative approach to energy management not only helps to stabilize the grid during periods of high demand but also offers a range of economic and environmental benefits that are likely to become even more valuable in the years to come.
