Polestar introduced its very first bi-directional charging product offering, a major step forward for electric car development. The company is Swedish and teamed up with DCBEL to integrate its entire car-to-home service for its own clients buying its new Polestar 3 car model to deliver residences located in California powered through its cars, acting as energy banks. This new tech helps cut down energy bills and provides additional power sources during power outage situations for its clients.
California residents benefit from innovative energy management
The first bi-way charging bundle is intended for residents of California, individuals for whom the state provides incentives via the California Energy Commission schemes. The Polestar 3 owners now stand to save as much as $1,300 per year on charging while also having power back-up for as many as 10 days during power outage situations. The home energy system harnesses direct current to facilitate smooth power transfer between home and car power systems through its DCBEL Ara installation.
California’s progressive energy policies and rich renewable resources make it the best place to pilot this new technology. California’s use of time-of-use rates for electricity makes it conducive to smart charging techniques to achieve peak cost-effectiveness and efficiency of use for electricity. Consumers can recharge their cars during off-peak periods and generate power to feed back to their households during peak hours to form an effective energy management system for dynamic consumption.
“Bi-directional charging is a game-changer for not only the automobile industry but also for your home energy system,” said Michael Lohscheller, CEO of Polestar. “Since bi-directional charging reduces your overall cost of ownership and makes your car do work for you even when it is parked,” it adds to why one should own a Polestar car,” added Lohscheller.
Expansion into Europe opens with Germany’s Zaptec collaboration
Simultaneously, Polestar also launched its bidirectional-ready home charger designed for the German market through its collaboration with Zaptec, marking its expansion move within the European markets. The home charger called ‘Zaptec Go2’ is compatible with its Polestar 3 car lineup and will have bidirectional capabilities added to its software upgrade once they are rolled out for its cars.
The German market is also an imperative stepping stone for expansion within Europe because of its high affinity for renewable energy and electric vehicles. Polestar also aims to include other markets for its offering of bidirectional charging solutions. This ensures development and alignment with the regulations of each market before rolling out its offering to its customers.
Technology facilitates grid support and optimization for renewable energy
Bidirectional charging technology makes it possible for electric cars to act as energy storage devices by accumulating renewable energy during times of oversupply and supplementing energy demands during peak hours to stabilize the power supply network while ensuring maximum consumption of power generated from solar or wind energy to reduce reliance on fossil fuels for base power generation.
“Polestar is further developing its capabilities for bi-directional charging and intends to launch broader solutions for new markets and carlines in the future,” added Olivier Loedel, Head of Software Product Management at Volvo Cars’ subsidiary Polestar. This new technology is not simple to integrate but rather requires clever connectivity between cars and home energy systems, as well as connectivity associated with the electrical grid.
The introduction of pole-to-pole charging technology by Polestar is a revolutionary move to integrate electric vehicles seamlessly into home energy systems. The project initiated by Polestar in California is evidence of its intention to implement this advanced charging technology successfully. When this technology becomes prevalent among various markets and models of vehicles, it is expected to empower car owners to manage their energy use to stabilize the power supply and harness renewable energy sources.
