Punggol to host Singapore’s largest vehicle-to-grid testbed; work kicks off in November
Technology can help the Republic better balance electricity demand and supply
Wong Pei Ting
PUNGGOL will soon play host to Singapore’s largest vehicle-to-grid (V2G) testbed. This comes as a consortium led by SMRT Corporation’s business arm, Strides, was awarded a grant to test the technology there. Conceptualisation work for the testbed kicks off next month (see clarification note).
V2G is a technology that allows a bidirectional flow of electricity between electric vehicles’ batteries and the power grid, thus allowing the vehicles to be transformed into dynamic assets where electricity can be harnessed when there is a lack of it.
Announcing this at the Singapore International Energy Week, EMA chairman Richard Lim said V2G is nascent today, with just a few commercial models of electric vehicles capable of supporting bidirectional charging.
However, he noted that the technology may become more developed as more electric vehicles are adopted. “It is therefore timely to kickstart our efforts to explore this emerging technology,” the chairman added.
The technology will come in handy as Singapore’s system peak demand is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of up to 6.5 per cent from 2023 to 2028, said the Energy Market Authority (EMA) and the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT).
EMA and SIT gave the Strides consortium the grant to conduct the testbed – which will involve 15 commercial vans and 10 V2G-enabled electric vehicle chargers – under the S$20 million Exploiting Distributed Generation (Edge) programme.
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Factors that add to the rise in peak demand are the growth of electricity-intensive sectors such as digital economy, advanced manufacturing, high-tech farming and vehicle electrification, they pointed out.
EMA chief executive Ngiam Shih Chun said the technology carries “untapped potential” that can support the grid in new ways.
“If successful, the testbed will enable Singapore to increase the use of innovative technologies to intelligently manage electricity demand, and unlock the potential of large-scale V2G adoption in the future.”
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Unlike conventional charging solutions which are unidirectional in nature, V2G not only enables dynamic charging of electric vehicles in response to grid conditions, but can also discharge electricity back to the grid when needed, EMA and SIT elaborated.
This “may help alleviate supply tightness and improve power system stability by better balancing electricity demand and supply”.
The Edge programme was launched by EMA and SIT in 2019, to focus on developing innovative power engineering projects and building capabilities that would support Singapore’s transition to a more sustainable future.
Under this partnership, companies and researchers from all institutes of higher learning have the opportunity to participate in grant calls, and develop new technologies and capabilities to build a more sustainable, reliable and resilient energy system.
SIT’s vice-president of applied research Susanna Leong said that with the project involving Strides, the university aims to leverage its microgrid capabilities, while providing SIT students with the opportunity to work with industry partners.
Clarification: This article has been amended to reflect a clarification from EMA that the project will begin in November but the test bed will not be ready till later.
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