Park and Flex aims to explore using EVs in carparks to access flexibility services, facilitating the efficient connection of low carbon demand and generation while avoiding expensive network investments.
What is the project about?
Park & Flex aims to unlock the potential of V2X-enabled EVs in public carparks. This untapped resource will harness new technology and infrastructure to transform how flexibility services are provided. By collaborating with key stakeholders, we are actively developing and testing real-world flexibility products and customer offerings.
Initial findings indicate these innovative propositions hold commercial promise in theory. Uncertainty exists with how much customers will embrace these, so we are developing a trial-ready customer proposition(s) for demonstration.
Park & Flex is changing the future of mobility and empowering customers to redefine the way they interact with EVs and public carparks.
How we’re doing it
Park and Flex (P&F) will trial the potential of bi-directional EV chargers in carparks to provide flexibility to help defer network reinforcement, accelerate connection of low carbon technology, renewable generation and storage, and provide benefits to consumers, businesses and flexibility providers. P&F will move beyond a simple technology demonstration, testing consumer appetite to engage with V2X propositions in real-world settings, and exploring viable business models to support these.
Our target users are:
carpark stakeholders who will need to invest in V2X products
individual drivers of EVs who will participate in V2X propositions, using their vehicles to provide flexibility when parked at carparks
What makes it innovative
With significant battery capacity set to be available in carparks, P&F will be a world first for a V2X proposition offered to drivers in long-stay carparks that would demonstrate new applications for V2X flexibility. Beta will chart new opportunities for chargepoint/carpark operators to get cheaper, faster connections for their infrastructure, and access to new revenue streams by compelling their customers to redefine the way they interact with EVs and carparks.
Innovative aspects of this include creating:
Business models that generate sufficient value from flexibility management to pay back costs of operation and support up-front capex requirements;
Customer propositions that enable real-world incentives and facilitate uptake of EVs.
What we’re learning
Throughout the project, we investigated the customer propositions and business models required to enable V2X delivery and incentivise consumer participation. Long-term settings were the most valuable (estimated at c.£4-5k per charger), followed by medium-term settings. Consequently, the first Beta trial will focus on this use case but the second trial could explore medium, and short-stay settings should an opportunity arise.
Business model analysis from Alpha indicates that V2X chargers can deliver a compelling business case by ‘stacking’ various flexibility revenue streams. Prior engagement with carpark owners and fleet operators provided invaluable commercial insights on perceptions of V2X but also revealed relatively limited market appetite to invest in the proposition due to the low number of V2X vehicles currently on the road. Beta aims to overcome these challenges and the commercial barriers to V2X roll out – namely public perception of battery degradation, jeopardising the current uptake of V2X products.
Share your ideas
If you have an idea that could reshape or revolutionise the way we work, we want to hear from you.
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